A nurse is preparing to delegate tasks to an assistive personnel (AP). The nurse should identify which of the following as one of the five rights of delegation?

Choice A reason: This action is correct because airway protection is the first priority for a client who is unconscious and has trauma to multiple systems. The nurse should assess the client's airway patency, breathing, and oxygenation, and intervene as needed to secure and maintain the airway. The nurse should also monitor the client for signs of aspiration, bleeding, or obstruction, and suction the airway as needed.
Choice B reason: This action is incorrect because stabilizing cardiac arrhythmias is not the first priority for a client who is unconscious and has trauma to multiple systems. The nurse should assess the client's circulation, blood pressure, and pulse, and intervene as needed to treat any arrhythmias, shock, or hemorrhage. However, this is not a priority over the client's airway, which is essential for survival.
Choice C reason: This action is incorrect because preventing musculoskeletal disability is not the first priority for a client who is unconscious and has trauma to multiple systems. The nurse should assess the client's mobility, sensation, and alignment, and intervene as needed to prevent or treat any fractures, dislocations, or nerve injuries. However, this is not a priority over the client's airway, which is essential for survival.
Choice D reason: This action is incorrect because decreasing intracranial pressure is not the first priority for a client who is unconscious and has trauma to multiple systems. The nurse should assess the client's level of consciousness, pupillary response, and neurological status, and intervene as needed to prevent or treat any increased intracranial pressure, cerebral edema, or brain injury. However, this is not a priority over the client's airway, which is essential for survival.

Choice A reason: Providing competencies for the nurses to achieve before licensure is not a description of standards of practice, but rather a function of the nursing education and accreditation system. Standards of practice are authoritative statements that define the expected level of performance for nurses after they obtain their license.

Choice B reason: Establishing a protocol for care to provide for a specific health problem is not a description of standards of practice, but rather a function of the clinical practice guidelines and evidence based practice. Standards of practice are broader and more general statements that apply to all nurses regardless of their specialty or setting.

Choice C reason: Specifying that nurses provide care that reflects current and competent level of behavior when providing client care is a description of standards of practice, as it captures the essence of what standards of practice are and why they are important. Standards of practice are based on the best available evidence and professional consensus, and they guide nurses in delivering safe, quality, and ethical care to their clients.

Choice D reason: Listing a set of skills that all nurses should be competent in performing, outlining responsibilities that every nurse is expected to provide regardless of their role is not a description of standards of practice, but rather a function of the scope of practice. Scope of practice describes the services that a qualified health professional is deemed competent to perform, and permitted to undertake, in keeping with the terms of their professional license..