A nurse is assessing a postoperative patient's surgical wound. Which assessment finding would indicate a wound infection?

A. Difficulty hearing low pitch: Age-related hearing loss, or presbycusis, typically affects the ability to hear high-pitched sounds rather than low-pitched sounds. Low-frequency hearing usually remains relatively intact in older adults, so difficulty hearing low-pitch sounds is not considered a normal age-related sensory change.

B. Heightened sense of smell: Olfactory function generally declines with aging due to decreased numbers of olfactory receptor cells and changes in the nasal epithelium. A heightened sense of smell is unusual in older adults and may indicate an underlying medical condition rather than a normal age-related change.

C. Decreased visual accommodation: Decreased accommodation of the lens, known as presbyopia, is a common and expected age-related change. It leads to difficulty focusing on near objects and is caused by lens rigidity and loss of elasticity, which reduces the eye’s ability to adjust for close vision.

D. Increased taste discrimination: Aging is associated with reduced taste sensitivity due to changes in taste buds and saliva production. An increased ability to discriminate tastes is not a normal finding and is inconsistent with typical sensory changes in older adults.

A. Sharing patient information with another student: Sharing patient information without proper authorization violates HIPAA and patient confidentiality regulations. Discussing identifiable health information outside of approved educational or clinical contexts exposes the patient to privacy breaches and the student and facility to legal and ethical consequences.

B. Reviewing the patient's medical record: Reviewing a patient’s medical record is an appropriate activity for learning and care planning, provided the student has legitimate access and the purpose is related to patient care or educational objectives. This practice is expected in clinical training and does not compromise patient confidentiality.

C. Documenting medication administered to the patient: Documentation is a standard nursing responsibility, and students may document under supervision as part of clinical learning. Proper documentation ensures continuity of care and accuracy in the medical record, making this a correct and safe behavior.

D. Reading the patient's plan of care: Reviewing the plan of care helps students understand nursing interventions, goals, and patient needs. Accessing this information for educational purposes within the clinical setting is appropriate and supports safe, informed care delivery, and does not require preceptor intervention.