The nurse is caring for a client at end-of-life who is receiving palliative care. Which intervention best promotes comfort?

Correct Answer: B

Rationale: Providing a quiet environment best promotes comfort for a client at end-of-life in palliative care, reducing sensory overload and fostering peace amid physical and emotional decline. Noise can heighten agitation or anxiety, common in dying patients, while quiet supports rest and dignity. Choice A, encouraging aggressive treatment, contradicts palliative goalscurative efforts may prolong suffering, not ease it. Choice C, scheduling frequent assessments, disrupts rest, increasing distress rather than comfort, though monitoring is needed, it should be unobtrusive. Choice D, limiting family presence, is counterproductivefamily often provides emotional solace, enhancing comfort unless the client specifies otherwise. Choice B is correct, aligning with palliative care's focus on holistic comfort, addressing environmental factors nurses control to minimize stress, complementing pain management and emotional support for a serene end-of-life experience.

Correct Answer: B

Rationale: The nurse recognizes that nonpharmacological pain relief measures have no side effects as their major advantage, unlike drugs risking nausea, addiction, or sedation. Methods like heat or relaxation rely on natural responses (e.g., circulation, calming), avoiding chemical risks. Choice A, replacing medications, isn't truethey complement, not supplant, drugs, especially for severe pain. Choice C, being more effective, variesnonpharmacological methods aid mild pain or adjunctively but rarely outdo opioids for intensity. Choice D, working immediately, isn't universal; effects (e.g., meditation) build slower than analgesics. Choice B is correct, highlighting safetynurses leverage this for clients wary of drugs or with comorbidities, integrating techniques like imagery or massage to enhance comfort without adding physiological burden, a key asset in holistic care.

Correct Answer: B

Rationale: The basis of the nurse's response is chronic pain itself, as persistent pain often causes depression by disrupting neurotransmitters (e.g., serotonin), fostering hopelessness, and limiting life enjoyment. This bidirectional linkpain worsening mood, mood amplifying painis well-established. Choice A, lack of activity, contributes but isn't primary; pain drives inactivity, not vice versa. Choice C, poor nutrition, may affect health but lacks direct evidence tying it to depression herepain's emotional toll is stronger. Choice D, medication side effects, like opioid-induced sedation, can depress mood, but the question implies pain's role, not treatment. Choice B is correct, guiding nurses to explain this connection, validating the spouse's observation, and suggesting integrated care (e.g., antidepressants, therapy) to break the pain-depression cycle, improving the client's overall well-being.

Correct Answer: B

Rationale: The basis of the nurse's response is the effect on the brain, as narcotic analgesics (opioids) like morphine stimulate the chemoreceptor trigger zone in the medulla, triggering nauseaa central nervous system side effect, not just digestive. This explains its prevalence across opioid types. Choice A, stomach irritation, contributes (e.g., oral opioids), but nausea often persists with IV delivery, pointing to brain involvement over local upset. Choice C, allergic reaction, is unlikelynausea is a common side effect, not a rare hypersensitivity sign like rash. Choice D, rapid absorption, affects onset, not nausea directly; slow-release forms still cause it. Choice B is correct, enabling nurses to explain this CNS effect, reassuring clients it's typical, and offering antiemetics (e.g., ondansetron) to manage it, ensuring narcotic use continues for pain relief without undue distress.

Correct Answer: D

Rationale: The basis of the nurse's response is to minimize discomfort, as pre-therapy pain medication reduces pain during movement, enabling active participation in physical therapy (e.g., stretching) without distresskey for recovery or chronic pain management. Timing optimizes function. Choice A, prevent drowsiness, is backwardanalgesics may cause it, but that's not the goal here. Choice B, reduce muscle tension, occurs indirectly, but discomfort reduction drives dosing, not just tension relief. Choice C, increase pain tolerance, is vaguemedication lowers pain perception, not tolerance capacity. Choice D is correct, guiding nurses to explain this preemptive strategye.g., taking ibuprofen 30 minutes priorensuring therapy's benefits (mobility) outweigh pain barriers, enhancing outcomes in rehab or chronic care.