A 3-year-old who has been attending preschool has been diagnosed with leukemia. The caregivers of this child ask the nurse what they can do to help their child feel secure. Which recommendation could the nurse make to these caregivers that would be helpful in making the child feel secure?

Choice A reason: Having the nurse do everything may disrupt the toddler’s trust in parents, hindering adaptation. Following home routines provides familiarity, making this counterproductive and incorrect compared to maintaining continuity to ease the toddler’s transition from home to the hospital environment.

Choice B reason: Telling a toddler expectations assumes cognitive understanding beyond their developmental stage, potentially increasing anxiety. Home routines offer comfort, making this less effective and incorrect compared to the nurse’s focus on familiarity to support the toddler’s hospital adaptation process.

Choice C reason: Following home routines maintains familiarity, reducing stress and aiding a toddler’s adaptation to the hospital. This aligns with pediatric psychosocial care principles, making it the most beneficial action for the nurse to implement to ease the toddler’s transition from home to hospital.

Choice D reason: Allowing a toddler to dictate actions disregards necessary medical routines, potentially compromising care and safety. Home routines provide structure, making this impractical and incorrect compared to the nurse’s role in maintaining familiarity to support the toddler’s hospital adaptation.

Choice A reason: Determining the chief complaint identifies the primary reason for the visit, guiding the assessment and care plan for the child. This aligns with pediatric nursing triage principles, making it the prioritized step to ensure focused, efficient care during the first visit to the clinic.

Choice B reason: Interviewing the caregiver provides context but follows identifying the chief complaint, which directs the conversation. The complaint sets the visit’s focus, making this secondary and incorrect compared to prioritizing the reason for the child’s visit in the initial pediatric clinic appointment.

Choice C reason: Obtaining biographical data is administrative and less urgent than addressing the child’s health concern. The chief complaint drives the clinical encounter, making this less critical and incorrect compared to prioritizing the identification of the primary issue in the first clinic visit.

Choice D reason: Recording the health history is important but comes after understanding the chief complaint, which shapes the history-taking. Identifying the complaint ensures relevance, making this subsequent and incorrect compared to the prioritized step of determining the reason for the child’s visit.