An older adult has been transferred to the postoperative inpatient unit after surgery.The family is concerned that the client is not waking up quickly and states "She needs to get back to her old self!" What response by the nurse is best?

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

Due to age-related changes,it may take longer for an older adult to metabolize anesthetic agents and pain medications,making it appear that they are taking too long to wake up and return to their normal baseline cognitive status.The nurse should educate the family on this possibility.While everyone does react differently,this does not give the family any objective information.Saying "Let's just give her more time,okay?" sounds patronizing and again does not provide information.While an intraoperative stroke is a possibility,the nurse should concentrate on the more common occurrence of older clients taking longer to fully arouse and awake.

An Older Adult Has Been Transferred to the Postoperative Inpatient