The nurse is sitting at the desk watching the telemetry monitors and notes a patient's rhythm suddenly shows asystole. Which action should the nurse take first?

Let's calculate how many tablets the nurse should administer:

Dosage prescribed: The doctor prescribed digoxin 0.25 mg.

Tablet strength: Each available tablet contains 0.125 mg of digoxin.

To find out how many tablets are needed, we can divide the prescribed dosage by the amount of digoxin per tablet:

Number of tablets = Prescribed dosage / Amount of digoxin per tablet

Number of tablets = 0.25 mg / 0.125 mg/tablet

Since we might get a decimal result due to the division, we need to round to the nearest whole number of tablets the nurse can administer for safety reasons.

In this case, dividing 0.25 mg by 0.125 mg/tablet gives us 2.

Therefore, rounding up to the nearest whole number of tablets, the nurse should administer 2 tablets.

(a) Administer another dose of the beta-blocker as prescribed by the physician: Administering another dose of the beta-blocker may not be the best course of action. If the client is experiencing fatigue and weakness, it could be a sign that the medication’s side effects are causing these symptoms. Administering an additional dose may exacerbate these side effects. Adjusting the medication regimen should be done under the direction of the healthcare provider.

(b) Offer the client a salty snack to improve blood pressure: Offering a salty snack may increase blood pressure, but it does not address the underlying issue of the medication’s side effects. Moreover, a diet high in salt can lead to other health problems, such as heart disease and stroke.

(c) Document the client’s symptoms and notify the healthcare provider: Documenting the client’s symptoms and notifying the healthcare provider is the most appropriate initial nursing action. The healthcare provider needs to be informed so that appropriate changes to the medication regimen can be made.

(d) Encourage the client to participate in physical therapy exercises: While physical therapy exercises can be beneficial for overall health, they do not address the immediate concern of the medication’s side effects. The client’s symptoms are indicative of medication side effects rather than a lack of physical activity. While physical therapy is important, it is not the most immediate priority in addressing the client’s current symptoms.