A nurse on a mental health unit notices that a client is becoming increasingly agitated and throws a table when he is unable to select the television (TV) channel. Which of the following should be a priority action by the nurse?
Attempt to talk the client down.
Administer a PRN antianxiety medication.
Place the client in a monitored seclusion room until he is calm.
Restrain the client to prevent injury to himself or others.
The Correct Answer is A
Choice A rationale:
Attempting to talk the client down is the priority action in this situation. Agitation can escalate to aggression or violence if not addressed appropriately. Engaging in therapeutic communication can help de-escalate the client's agitation, express understanding, and potentially find out the underlying cause of their distress. This approach prioritizes a non-pharmacological intervention.
Choice B rationale:
Administer a PRN antianxiety medication. While medication might be a consideration for managing agitation, it's generally not the first action to take. Non-pharmacological interventions, like therapeutic communication, should be attempted first to minimize the reliance on medications to manage behaviors.
Choice C rationale:
Place the client in a monitored seclusion room until he is calm. Placing a client in seclusion should be a last resort and should only be done when there's an immediate risk of harm to the client or others. In this scenario, the client's agitation doesn't seem to present an imminent danger, so seclusion would be an excessive and restrictive intervention.
Choice D rationale:
Restrain the client to prevent injury to himself or others. Restraint should be an absolute last resort and only used when there's an imminent risk of harm that cannot be managed in any other way. Restraint can escalate agitation and trauma for the client, as well as pose legal and ethical concerns. Therefore, it should only be used when all other options have been exhausted and safety is a critical concern.
Nursing Test Bank
Naxlex Comprehensive Predictor Exams
Related Questions
Correct Answer is ["A","B","E"]
Explanation
Answer and explanation
The correct answers are choices A. Depression, B. Obsessive-compulsive disorder, E. Anxiety.
Choice A rationale:
Depression commonly coexists with eating disorders. The individual's distorted body image, feelings of low self-worth, and dietary restrictions can contribute to the development of depressive symptoms.
Choice B rationale:
Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) often occurs alongside eating disorders. The obsessions and compulsions seen in OCD can overlap with behaviors related to food, eating rituals, and body image, reinforcing the eating disorder pathology.
Choice C rationale:
Schizophrenia is not typically considered a comorbidity of eating disorders. Schizophrenia involves disruptions in thought processes, emotions, and perceptions, which are distinct from the cognitive distortions and behaviors associated with eating disorders.
Choice D rationale:
Breathing-related sleep disorder is not a commonly recognized comorbidity of eating disorders. While sleep disturbances might occur in individuals with eating disorders due to physical discomfort or anxiety, a specific link to breathing-related sleep disorder is less established.
Choice E rationale:
Anxiety is a well-recognized comorbidity of eating disorders. Anxiety often accompanies the intense fears, worries, and preoccupations related to body weight, shape, and eating behaviors that are characteristic of eating disorders.
Correct Answer is C
Explanation
Choice A rationale:
The Brief Patient Health naire (Brief PHQ) is primarily used for assessing the presence and severity of depressive symptoms and not specifically for cognitive disorders. It consists of nine items that assess the frequency of specific symptoms over the past two weeks.
Choice B rationale:
The Scale for Assessment of Negative Symptoms (SANS) is a tool used to assess negative symptoms in schizophrenia and other related psychotic disorders. It includes items related to affective blunting, alogia, anhedonia, and avolition, which are not directly relevant to the assessment of cognitive disorders.
Choice C rationale:
The Mental Status Examination (MSE) is a comprehensive assessment of cognitive function, including orientation, memory, attention, language, and executive function. It provides valuable information about the client's cognitive abilities and can aid in diagnosing cognitive disorders such as dementia or delirium.
Choice D rationale:
The Abnormal Involuntary Movements Scale (AIMS) is used to assess the presence and severity of tardive dyskinesia, a movement disorder commonly associated with the use of antipsychotic medications. It is not relevant to the assessment of cognitive disorders.
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