The patient has a temperature of 105.2 F. The nurse is attempting ...

[cookcarl]

The patient has a temperature of 105.2 F. The nurse is attempting to lower temperature by providing tepid sponge baths and placing cool compresses in strategic body locations. Which technique is the nurse using to lower the patient's temperature?
 
  a. Radiation
  b. Conduction
  c. Convection
  d. Evaporation

Question 2

The nurse is working the night shift on a surgical unit and is making 4:00 AM rounds. The nurse notices that the patient's temperature is 96.8 F (36 C), whereas at 4:00 PM the preceding day, it was 98.6 F (37 C). What should the nurse do?
 
  a. Call the health care provider immediately to report a possible infection.
  b. Administer medication to lower the temperature further.
  c. Provide another blanket to conserve body temperature.
  d. Realize that this is a normal temperature variation.

[tashiedavis420]

Answer to Question 1

ANS: B
Applying an ice pack or bathing a patient with a cool cloth increases conductive heat loss because of the direct contact. Radiation is the transfer of heat from the surface of one object to the surface of another without direct contact between the two. Evaporation is the transfer of heat energy when a liquid is changed to a gas. Convection is the transfer of heat away from the body by air movement.

Answer to Question 2

ANS: D
Body temperature normally changes 0.5 to 1 C (0.9 to 1.8 F) during a 24-hour period and is usually lowest between 1:00 and 4:00 AM, with a maximum temperature at 4:00 PM, making this variation normal for the time of day. Unless the patient reports being cold, there is no physiological need for providing an extra blanket or medication to lower the body temperature further. There is also no need to call a health care provider to report a normal temperature variation.