The family member of a client with numerous physiological complaints tells the nurse that the client is pretending to be sick to avoid going to work.Which somatoform disorder is this patient most likely experiencing?

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

The family member's statement suggests that the client is deliberately faking symptoms to achieve a specific outcome, which is avoiding work. This behavior is consistent with malingering, which is not considered a true somatoform disorder but rather a conscious and intentional act of feigning symptoms for secondary gain, such as receiving disability compensation or avoiding obligations. Hypochondriasis (A) is a preoccupation with having a serious illness despite little evidence of it. Somatization (B) is characterized by multiple, recurrent, and diverse physical complaints that cannot be fully explained by medical evaluation. Somatoform pain disorder (C) involves persistent pain without any identifiable physical cause or an excessive and disproportionate reaction to a medical condition. None of these disorders involve deliberate fabrication or exaggeration of symptoms.

The Family Member of a Client with Numerous Physiological Complaints