A patient with a history of anger and impulsivity was hospitalized after an accident resulting in multiple injuries. The patient loudly scolds nursing staff, "I'm in pain all the time but you don't give me medicine until YOU think it's time." Which nursing intervention would best address this problem?
A) Teach the patient to use coping strategies such as deep breathing and progressive relaxation to reduce the pain.
B) Talk with the health care provider about changing the pain medication from prn to patient-controlled analgesia.
C) Tell the patient that verbal assaults on nurses will not shorten the wait for analgesic medication.
D) Talk with the patient about the risks of dependency associated with overuse of analgesic medication.

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

Use of patient-controlled analgesia will help the patient manage the pain. This intervention will help reduce the patient's anxiety and anger. Dependency is not an important concern related to acute pain.

A Patient with a History of Anger and Impulsivity Was