Author Question: A nurse aide working in the geriatric unit's dining room tells the nurse that a patient who was ... (Read 84 times)

jenna1 · **on:** Jul 11, 2018

A nurse aide working in the geriatric unit's dining room tells the nurse that a patient who was oriented to time and place this morning is now confused about what day it is and why she's here. The nurse appropriately directs the nurse aide to

a. take the patient back to her room and put her safely in bed.
b. place a falls risk identification bracelet on the patient and add the status care plan.
c. immediately take the patient's vital signs and report them to her.
d. reorient the patient to time and place fre-quently and document the patient's re-sponse.

Question 2

A nurse assesses an older patient who has lost a great deal of weight in a short time

When asked, the patient states this behavior started after the patient read a magazine article on the benefits of extreme caloric restrictions. What response by the nurse is best?
a. That research was done on rodents and not on humans.
b. You shouldn't restrict your calories so severely.
c. You have lost so much weight you need dietary supplements.
d. You can't believe everything you read in those magazines.

komodo7 · **Reply #1 on:** Jul 11, 2018

Answer to Question 1

C
A sudden change in an older adult patient's cognitive status is likely a symptom of a physiologic stressor such as an infection. The vital signs will allow the nurse to determine the presence of a fever or other deviation from the patient's baseline vitals. The patient may or may not need or wish to go to bed, but this does not provide any data for the nurse to evaluate. An ill patient may need to be on fall precautions, but again this does not provide data. Reorientation may be neces-sary, but if the patient has an illness, this needs to be taken care of.

Answer to Question 2

A
The metabolic theory of aging postulates that organisms have a specific metabolic lifetime and that by lowering metabolic rate, life span can be increased. However, this has been demonstrated in rodents and the nurse should educate the patient on this information. The other options do not give information that will help the patient make an informed decision as to whether or not to follow this activity.