A nurse on a medical-surgical unit is evaluating an assistive personnel’s use of infection control precautions. Which of the following actions by the AP indicates correct use of the precautions?

a. Ask the client if she would like a sedative to help her relax:

Offering a sedative may not address the underlying reasons for the client's desire to leave. Moreover, administering a sedative without addressing the client's concerns or obtaining informed consent would not be appropriate.

b. Inform the client that she cannot leave without a discharge prescription from the provider:

While informing the client of the discharge process is important, presenting this information as a restriction may not be the most therapeutic approach. Additionally, in many healthcare settings, patients have the legal right to leave against medical advice, so presenting it as a requirement may not be accurate.

c. Have the client sign the Against Medical Advice form:

When a client decides to leave against medical advice, it is standard practice to have them sign an Against Medical Advice (AMA) form. This form documents the client's decision and acknowledges that they are leaving the hospital against the advice of the healthcare provider.

d. Assign a security officer to the client's room until the provider can speak with the client:

Assigning a security officer may be appropriate in situations where there are concerns for the safety of the client or others, such as if the client is agitated or threatening harm. However, in this scenario, the client has expressed a desire to leave, and assigning a security officer may escalate the situation unnecessarily.

a. Close the documentation program on the computer:

This action is appropriate as it immediately stops unauthorized access to the client's medical information and prevents further viewing of protected health information (PHI).

b. Find out which staff member left the documentation program on the screen:

While it's important to identify any staff member who may have left the documentation program open, addressing this issue should not be the first priority. The immediate concern is stopping the unauthorized access to the client's information and ensuring that the visitor is aware of the confidentiality breach.

c. Tell the charge nurse that the visitor viewed a client’s protected health information:

Notifying the charge nurse about the incident is important, but it should not be the first action taken. The priority is to address the immediate breach of confidentiality and prevent further unauthorized access to the client's information.

d. Inform the visitor that client records are confidential:

This action may be appropriate after addressing the immediate breach of confidentiality. However, it should not be the first action taken as it does not immediately stop the unauthorized access to the client's information.