A nurse working in the office of a health care provider (HCP) must respond to client telephone messages. The nurse should return which call first?

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

The nurse should first call the client with tingling in the right foot. Musculoskeletal injuries and immobilization devices (cast) can cause neurologic or vascular damage to the extremity distal to the injury. Paresthesia (eg, numbness, tingling) is an early sign of neurovascular impairment (nerve ischemia). It would be important for the client to report to the HCP for immediate evaluation. This is the most urgent call to return. (Option A) Nausea is an expected side effect of the synthetic opioid pain reliever, oxycodone. The nurse can instruct this client to take this medication with food, which may help alleviate the nausea. This is not the most urgent call. (Option C) Clients with diabetes are usually able to take the prescribed insulin dose when ill, and some clients may need a higher dose. Illness is a physiologic stressor and can increase blood glucose level. On the other hand, if the oral intake is low, blood sugars can be low and insulin may need to be reduced. The best step is to instruct this client to check glucose level and repeat every 4 hours and to report glucose levels above or below the target range to the HCP for specific orders. This is not the most urgent call. (Option D) Amitriptyline (Elavil), a tricyclic antidepressant drug, can be prescribed for difficulty sleeping due to chronic pain of fibromyalgia, but it may not be effective in all clients. This is not the most urgent call. Educational objective: Musculoskeletal injuries and immobilization devices (cast) can cause neurologic or vascular damage to the extremity distal to the injury. Paresthesia (eg, numbness, tingling) is an early sign of neurovascular impairment (nerve ischemia).

A Nurse Working in the Office of a Health Care