Nursing Elites

1. You are attempting to teach the wife of a Greek patient how to administer his gastrostomy tube feedings once he returns home. She smiles and nods through your explanations, but when you ask her for a return demonstration, she looks confused and shakes her head. Her daughter enters the room and states that she does not speak English. What would be most helpful in this situation?

• A. Teach the daughter instead
• B. Teach both and ask the daughter to translate for you
• C. Contact a home health agency to provide care
• D. Provide a pamphlet with detailed instructions

Correct answer: B

Rationale: Teaching both the patient's wife and the daughter is the best option in this situation. The daughter may not always be available, and the wife is eager to care for her husband at home. While a hospital interpreter is often preferred, asking the daughter to interpret is a good alternative. This approach allows the daughter to receive instruction and reinforce it for herself as she translates it to her mother. Contacting a home health agency may not be necessary if family members are willing and able to assist. Providing a pamphlet with detailed instructions would not be as effective in ensuring the wife fully understands the procedure and can carry it out correctly.

2. You are on the unit and overhear another nurse talking on the phone to a patient's friend who wants to see her patient who is comatose and on a ventilator. Since you cared for that patient yesterday, you know that the patient's significant other, who is also the designated healthcare surrogate (HCS) and has power of attorney (POA), has expressly stated that he wants this person on the list for restricted visitors. The nurse whispers that she'll call him to visit as soon as the significant other has gone home. What should your first response be?

• A. Inform the significant other
• B. Report the nurse to the nurse manager
• C. Speak with the nurse directly in private
• D. Call the visitor and tell him he can't visit

Correct answer: C

Rationale: Speaking with the nurse directly and privately is the most constructive manner in which to handle this situation and advocate for the significant other's wishes. Doing so will open communication with a peer and build the relationship, instead of alienating the other nurse by taking action that does not involve her and will cast her in a negative light with others. It is essential to express your concerns regarding honoring the significant other's requests and rights regarding the limitation of visitors. Option A is incorrect because the significant other is not the one trying to visit, and it is more appropriate to address the nurse directly first. Option B is not the best initial response as it may escalate the situation without giving the nurse a chance to correct the issue. Option D is incorrect as it does not address the issue at its source and may create further conflict without resolving the underlying problem.

3. A client with schizophrenia seems to stop focusing during a conversation with a nurse and begins looking at the ceiling and talking to themselves. Which of the following actions should the nurse take?

• A. Stop the interview at this point and resume later when the client is better able to concentrate
• B. Ask the client, 'Are you seeing something on the ceiling?'
• C. Tell the client, 'You seem to be looking at something on the ceiling. I see something there, too.'
• D. Continue the interview without commenting on the client's behavior

Correct answer: B

Rationale: When a client with schizophrenia experiences a break in reality like staring at the ceiling and talking to themselves, the nurse should ask directly about the hallucination, as stated in choice B. By doing so, the nurse can assess the situation, identify the client's needs, and evaluate any potential risk for injury. Choices A, C, and D are incorrect. Stopping the interview (choice A) may not address the immediate concern of the hallucination. Providing false reassurance (choice C) or ignoring the behavior (choice D) does not actively address the client's altered perception of reality.

4. A physician is explaining a procedure to a patient that may cure her recurring Staph infection. The doctor explains how the procedure is done, what to expect, the odds of the procedure curing the infection, and possible side effects and risks. The physician is:

• A. Preparing the patient to give informed consent.
• B. Protecting HIPAA by listing all the steps of the procedure with the risks involved.
• C. Not required to inform the patient of any alternative therapies.
• D. None of the above.

Correct answer: A

Rationale: The correct answer is preparing the patient to give informed consent. Giving informed consent is the process of providing a patient with all necessary information about a medical procedure, including how it's done, what to expect, the likelihood of success, and potential risks and side effects. This allows the patient to make an informed decision about their treatment. Protecting HIPAA (Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act) involves safeguarding patient health information and is not directly related to the scenario described. It is important for physicians to inform patients of any alternative therapies available to them to ensure they have all relevant information to make a decision regarding their treatment. Therefore, choice C, 'Not required to inform the patient of any alternative therapies,' is incorrect. Choice D, 'None of the above,' is incorrect as the physician is indeed preparing the patient for informed consent.

5. When a nurse is asked by a physician to speak to a colleague about their unprofessional behavior in front of a client but chooses not to confront the colleague and avoids the physician the next day, what type of conflict resolution is the nurse exhibiting?

• A. Accommodation
• B. Competition
• C. Avoidance
• D. Negotiation

Correct answer: C

Rationale: The nurse is exhibiting the conflict resolution strategy of avoidance. Avoidance involves ignoring the problem in the hope that it will go away on its own. In this scenario, the nurse avoids confronting the colleague and stays away from the physician, which does not address the issue directly. While avoidance may provide time for others to gain insight into the situation, it typically does not lead to a resolution of the underlying problems. Accommodation (A) involves yielding to the wishes of others, competition (B) entails pursuing one's own concerns at the expense of others, and negotiation (D) involves seeking a mutually agreeable solution through communication and compromise, none of which are demonstrated by the nurse in this situation.

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