The nurse prepares to irrigate a patient's nasogastric (NG)tube after a colon resection.Which intervention does the nurse implement to irrigate the NG tube?

Question

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The nurse instills normal saline solution to irrigate the NG tube to maintain fluid and electrolyte balance and minimize electrolyte depletion from hypotonic fluids.The nurse uses clean technique for irrigating because the patient's surgical site is farther down the gastrointestinal tract; however,he or she uses sterile irrigating fluid for upper gastrointestinal surgery.Water is usually acceptable for NG tube irrigation and can be a better solution to remove debris from within the tube because it is hypotonic.Irrigating the NG tube is a nursing task that the nurse cannot delegate because it requires clinical judgment and critical thinking skills.

The Nurse Prepares to Irrigate a Patient's Nasogastric (NG)tube After