A nurse is caring for a patient who reports a recent increase in stressors.
Which of the following concepts should the nurse use to develop necessary context to both understand and deliver nursing care for this patient?

Choice A rationale
While understanding the next step in treatment is important, this question does not invite the client to clarify their feelings. It is more focused on the client’s understanding of the treatment plan rather than their emotional state.
Choice B rationale
Asking if the client needs more resources or information is a helpful question, but it does not specifically invite the client to clarify their feelings. It is more focused on providing information and resources.
Choice C rationale
This question invites the client to share their coping skills, which can give insight into how they are dealing with their feelings. It opens up a conversation about their emotional state and how they are managing it, which can lead to further discussion and clarification.
Choice D rationale
While this statement acknowledges the client’s feelings, it does not invite them to clarify or expand on them. It is more of a statement than a question, and it assumes that the nurse knows how the client feels.

Choice A rationale
While understanding the concepts of right and wrong can be important in many aspects of nursing care, it may not be particularly helpful in this context. The patient’s stressors are not necessarily related to moral or ethical dilemmas.
Choice B rationale
The concepts of justified and unjustified might be relevant in some contexts, but they may not provide the necessary context to understand and deliver nursing care for this patient. These

concepts are more related to the evaluation of actions or decisions, rather than understanding a patient’s experience of stress.
Choice C rationale
Good and bad are subjective terms that can vary greatly between individuals. While these concepts might be relevant in some contexts, they may not provide the necessary context to understand and deliver nursing care for this patient.
Choice D rationale
The concepts of adaptive and maladaptive are directly relevant to understanding a patient’s response to stress. Adaptive strategies are those that help an individual cope effectively with stress, while maladaptive strategies are those that do not help, or that may even exacerbate the stress.