The nurse is caring for a patient who recently had surgery to repair a hernia.The patient's pain was 7 out of 10 before receiving pain medication.One hour after receiving an oral opioid,the patient ranks his pain at 3 out of 10.The patient asks the nurse why he isn't receiving more pain medication.Which is the nurse's best response?

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

The patient is responding well to the oral pain medication and it can take up to 2 hours for oral medications to relieve pain.Trying nonpharmacological interventions as an addition to opioid medications is appropriate at this time.If nonpharmacological interventions combined with the oral opioid are ineffective,the nurse needs to notify the health care provider and ask for a change in the medication or for additional pain medication.Saying that the patient has to wait 4 hours for additional pain medication is inaccurate because the nurse needs to provide further nursing interventions if pain is not relieved at an acceptable level for the patient.Admission to an intensive care unit is not typically necessary to manage pain following surgery for a hernia.

The Nurse Is Caring for a Patient Who Recently Had