Author Question: When you check the vital signs of a client who is suicidal, the client tells you, Go away, I'm not ... (Read 78 times)

mckennatimberlake · **on:** Jul 19, 2018

When you check the vital signs of a client who is suicidal, the client tells you, Go away, I'm not worth saving, and Take that thing off of my arm. In addition to talking to this client, what do you do?

a. Leave the room.
b. Call for help.
c. Leave the blood pressure (BP) cuff on while you discuss options with the client.
d. Move the cuff to the other arm, and hope the client will be too busy to notice.

Question 2

A well-functioning multidisciplinary team manages problems of chronic pain by first evaluating which of the following?

a. the meaning of the pain for the client
b. the intensity of the pain
c. psychopharmacologic al treatment
d. the effects of surgical procedures

potomatos · **Reply #1 on:** Jul 19, 2018

Answer to Question 1

C
If a suicidal client refuses treatment and asks the nurse to remove the BP cuff and go away, the nurse should remain with the client and leave the BP cuff on while discussing the options with the client. Communicating with the client is needed to develop a trusting relationship. It is important for the nurse to explain to the client the need to monitor the BP after a suicide attempt. Changes in vital signs are an indication of whether the client's physical status is improving or declining.

Answer to Question 2

A
The first thing to be evaluated is what the pain means to the client. In some cases, there is no medical solution that completely eliminates the chronic pain a client may be experiencing. Therefore, by understanding what the pain means to the client, the team can have a greater understanding of how the pain influences how the client leads his or her life. The team can then use this information to develop a treatment plan that, if not eliminating the client's pain, will at least allow the client to live productively in spite of the pain.