The parents of an 8-month-old infant are very distressed that the ...

[Haya94]

The parents of an 8-month-old infant are very distressed that the infant cries for at least one hour when they go out on Friday nights. Which of these statements should the nurse make to the parents?
 
  1. Your infant is too young to be experiencing stranger anxiety; however, you might need to stop going out on Friday nights for a while.
 
  2. Do you think your infant is in pain?
 
  3. Oh, don't worry. All infants and toddlers display these behaviors until at least 2 years old.
 
  4. Your infant is attached to you. This is an expected infant response.

Question 2

A nurse asks the mother of a 4-month-old to undress the infant. The nurse observes the mother taking off several layers of clothing, knowing that the outdoor temperature is 70F. Which of these statements should the nurse make to the mother?
 
  1. My, you are dressing your infant warmly today.
 
  2. Did you think it was it cold when you left your home this morning?
 
  3. I see that you have many layers of clothing on your baby. This could cause your baby's temperature to rise.
 
  4. When you leave the office, only put one layer of clothing on your baby.

[succesfull]

Answer to Question 1

4
Rationale:
1. 8-month-old infants do experience stranger anxiety.
2. There is no indication that the infant would be in pain on a weekly basis.
3. This is a non-therapeutic response. Infants usually stop experiencing stranger anxiety before 2 years of age.
4. The best response is an explanation to the parents on attachment behaviors, and assurance that this is a normal infant response.

Answer to Question 2

3
Rationale:
1. Making a statement on how warmly the child is dressed will not necessarily accomplish this goal.
2. This comment might cause the mother to become defensive, and so is not helpful to the mother.
3. In this scenario, the mother has overdressed the infant. The nurse needs to inform the mother of this problem gently, and to provide information to the mother on why it is a problem.
4. Telling the mother to only put one layer of clothing on the child does not provide a rationale for the mother to make a better decision the next time, and so is not helpful to the mother.