A patient has asked a nurse to assist him to ambulate to the bathroom.The nurse is aware that the patient is currently taking an antidepressant medication.What action should the nurse implement?

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

Antidepressant medications can cause changes in a patient's blood pressure, which may result in dizziness or lightheadedness upon standing. To prevent falls, the nurse should ask the patient to sit on the side of the bed for a minute or two before standing and then stand slowly. Option A may not be necessary unless there are other indications of suicide risk. Option B may not address the patient's need to ambulate to the bathroom. Option C may assume that every patient taking an antidepressant medication is at high risk for suicide, which is not necessarily true.

A Patient Has Asked a Nurse to Assist Him to Ambulate