The single mother of a 4-year-old who attends day care tells the primary care pediatric nurse practitioner that she had difficulty giving her child a twice-daily amoxicillin for 10 days to treat otitis media during a previous episode several months earlier because she works two jobs and is too busy. The child has an ear infection in the clinic today. What will the nurse practitioner do?

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

Since the mother had difficulty adhering to a twice-daily antibiotic regimen previously, prescribing a once-daily medication such as azithromycin may improve adherence and increase the likelihood of successful treatment. Intramuscular antibiotics are not indicated for otitis media and a shorter course of amoxicillin may not be effective, especially if the previous course was not completed in full. Reinforcing the need to adhere to the plan of care is important, but may not be sufficient to address the mother's difficulties.

The Single Mother of a 4-Year-Old Who Attends Day Care