The patient has returned from a gastroscopy procedure.He has been NPO since midnight last night and has not received his morning medications.What should the nurse do before giving him his medications?

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

Assess patient's swallow,cough,and gag reflexes.Determine the patient's ability to swallow safely.Patients with altered ability to swallow are at higher risk for aspiration.
If possible,the patient should be allowed to self-administer oral medications.Checking for a gag reflex takes priority over assessing the ability to cough in preventing aspiration.Straws should be avoided because they decrease the control the patient has over volume intake,which increases the risk for aspiration.Some patients cannot tolerate thin liquids such as water and need them to be thickened.

The Patient Has Returned from a Gastroscopy Procedure