Nursing Elites

1. The nurse is caring postoperatively for an 8-year-old child with multiple fractures and other traumatic injuries from a motor vehicle crash. The child is experiencing severe pain. What is an important consideration in managing the child’s pain?

• A. Give only an opioid analgesic at this time.
• B. Increase the dosage of analgesic until the child is adequately sedated.
• C. Plan a preventive schedule of pain medication around the clock.
• D. Give the child a clock and explain when they can have pain medications.

Correct answer: C

Rationale: For severe postoperative pain, a preventive around-the-clock schedule is necessary to prevent decreased plasma levels of medications. Providing only an opioid analgesic at this time may not be sufficient for effective pain management. Increasing the dosage without an order is unsafe and may lead to oversedation. Planning a preventive schedule of pain medication around the clock ensures consistent pain relief and better management. Giving the child a clock and explaining when they can have pain medications may increase the child's focus on waiting for relief rather than addressing the pain promptly, making it a less effective strategy.

2. After teaching a group of nursing students about developmental milestones for children between the ages of 1 and 4 years, the instructor determines that the teaching was successful when the students identify which of the following as a gross motor developmental milestone that occurs between 2 to 3 years of age?

• A. Jumping in place
• B. Climbing
• C. Standing on one foot with help
• D. Riding a tricycle

Correct answer: B

Rationale: Climbing is a gross motor milestone typically achieved between 2 to 3 years of age. It involves coordination and strength. Jumping in place is usually mastered around 2 years of age. Standing on one foot with help is a skill that emerges around 3 years. Riding a tricycle typically occurs closer to 3 years and involves coordination and balance, which are more refined skills compared to climbing at an earlier age.

3. What is an important consideration in understanding the reactions of parents when their infant is born with physical defects?

• A. Grief lasts until the defects are repaired.
• B. Denial is a common adaptive reaction.
• C. The psychologic reaction is similar to that with the death of an infant.
• D. Reactions of health professionals to the birth of an infant can affect parents’ reactions.

Correct answer: C

Rationale: When a parent's infant is born with physical defects, understanding the psychological reactions is crucial. The reaction is often similar to the grief experienced when facing the death of a child. Parents need to grieve for the loss of the expected child and adapt to the needs of a child with physical defects. The grief process typically involves stages like shock, frustration, and anger, which can last for years. Denial during the shock phase is not maladaptive but can help parents cope initially. Additionally, parents are sensitive to the behavior of health professionals, whose interactions can significantly influence the parents' reactions to the infant. Therefore, recognizing the similarity of the psychological reaction to grief is an important consideration in understanding how parents cope with their infant's physical defects.

4. The mother of a 3-month-old breastfed infant asks about giving her baby water because it is summer and very warm. What should the nurse tell her?

• A. Fluids in addition to breast milk are not needed.
• B. Water should be given if the infant seems to nurse longer than usual.
• C. Clear juices are better than water to promote adequate fluid intake.
• D. Water once or twice a day will make up for losses resulting from environmental temperature.

Correct answer: A

Rationale: Breast milk provides adequate hydration, even in warm weather, so additional fluids like water are not necessary and can interfere with breastfeeding.

5. A breastfed infant is being seen in the clinic for a 6-month checkup. The mother tells the nurse that the infant recently began to suck her thumb. Which is the best nursing intervention?

• A. Reassure the mother that this is normal at this age
• B. Recommend the mother substitute a pacifier for her thumb
• C. Assess the infant for other signs of sensory deprivation
• D. Suggest the mother breastfeed the infant more often to satisfy her sucking needs

Correct answer: A

Rationale: Thumb sucking is a normal self-soothing behavior in infants and usually does not indicate a problem. Reassuring the mother that this is normal is the appropriate response.

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