A community health nurse is implementing a tertiary prevention activity related to tuberculosis. Which of the following interventions is the nurse most likely completing?

Choice A reason: A tetanus booster every 10 years stimulates immunity before infection occurs, a hallmark of primary prevention. It targets Clostridium tetani, preventing toxin production that causes muscle spasms, leveraging the immune system’s memory cells to neutralize the bacteria preemptively, reducing disease incidence effectively.

Choice B reason: Tetanus immunoglobulin provides immediate antibodies post-exposure, a passive immunity approach, not primary prevention. It neutralizes existing toxins from Clostridium tetani after a nail puncture, acting as a secondary measure to halt disease progression rather than preventing infection onset proactively.

Choice C reason: Screening for tetanus infection involves testing for Clostridium tetani presence or symptoms, a secondary prevention tactic. It identifies disease early for treatment, not prevention, focusing on detecting toxin-producing bacteria after exposure rather than building immunity to stop infection initially.

Choice D reason: Administering antibiotics and seizure precautions treats active tetanus, a tertiary prevention strategy. It addresses Clostridium tetani infection and toxin effects like lockjaw after onset, aiming to reduce complications and severity, not to prevent the disease from occurring initially.

Choice A reason: Delaying political involvement until after orientation sidesteps its ongoing relevance. Nurses influence health policy, like staffing laws, impacting client care quality. This dismisses how advocacy shapes ethical practice, limiting systemic improvements beyond individual clinical skills alone comprehensively over time.

Choice B reason: Claiming clinical excellence fulfills all obligations ignores broader ethical duties. Politics shapes healthcare access, like funding for underserved areas. Focusing solely on bedside care neglects advocacy’s role in addressing systemic inequities affecting client outcomes long-term fundamentally across populations.

Choice C reason: Reducing political action to ANA fees minimizes its scope. True involvement, like lobbying for safety laws, directly impacts clients. Passive membership doesn’t address ethical needs for active policy influence on care quality and access beyond mere financial support alone.

Choice D reason: Political action fulfills ethical duties by advocating for clients’ rights, like better resources or laws. It extends care beyond the bedside, addressing systemic issues—e.g., opioid crisis policies—ensuring justice and beneficence in healthcare delivery comprehensively for all affected populations effectively.