Author Question: When assessing an older adult client, the nurse notes that the client demonstrates an inability to ... (Read 193 times)

Mr3Hunna · **on:** Jul 8, 2018

When assessing an older adult client, the nurse notes that the client demonstrates an inability to take purposeful action even when the muscles, senses, and vocabulary appear to be intact.

The client appears to register on a command but acts in a way that suggests little understanding of what transpired verbally. The nurse recognizes these assessment findings as consistent with which of the following conditions?

a. Presbycusis
b. Somatization
c. Apraxia
d. Polypharmacy

Question 2

The nurse is caring for a family that is experiencing a crisis. The nurse recognizes that interventions for initial family responses to crisis include

a. minimizing the family's sense of control within the hospital environment.
b. prohibiting extreme expression of feelings.
c. providing the family with information that is lengthy and abstract.
d. repeating and frequently reinforcing information.

krakiolit · **Reply #1 on:** Jul 8, 2018

Answer to Question 1

ANS: C
Apraxia, defined as the loss of the ability to take purposeful action even when the muscles, senses, and vocabulary seem intact, is a common feature of dementia. The person appears to register on a command but acts in ways that suggest he or she has little understanding of what transpired verbally. Hearing loss associated with normal aging begins after age 50 years and is due to loss of hair cells (which are not replaced) in the organ of Corti in the inner ear. This change leads initially to a loss in the ability to hear high-frequency sounds (e.g., f, s, th, sh, ch) and is called presbycusis. Although most people weather the necessary losses of life, late life depression is an often untreated problem in older adults. Unlike symptoms of depression in younger people, somatization with vague physical complaints may be its first presenting sign. Polypharmacy is a fact of life for older adults. As people age, many need multiple medications to maintain a healthy lifestyle. Polypharmacy places older adults at risk for side effects and drug interactions because of age-related changes in metabolism. Medications in general have a stronger effect on the older population and take longer to be eliminated from the body.

Answer to Question 2

ANS: D
Interventions for initial family responses to crisis include repeating information and frequently reinforcing it. They also include the following: maximizing control within the hospital environment; providing for and encouraging or allowing expression of feelings, even if they are extreme; and giving information that is brief, concise, explicit, and concrete.