A nurse is supervising the logrolling of a patient. To which patient is the nurse most likely providing care?

A) Activate the fire alarm: The nurse's priority in the event of a fire is to activate the fire alarm immediately. This alerts others in the building, including staff and emergency responders, to the potential danger. It initiates the necessary protocol to ensure the safety of all individuals in the area and enables timely evacuation if needed. Ensuring that others are aware of the fire risk is the first critical step in managing the situation effectively.

B) Move any clients in the immediate vicinity: While moving clients away from the immediate danger is important, it should come after the alarm has been activated. The fire alarm alerts everyone to evacuate or take necessary precautions, allowing the nurse and other staff to focus on evacuation or safety measures. The priority is to ensure that everyone is aware of the potential fire hazard and follows the evacuation procedures.

C) Close the fire doors on the unit: Closing fire doors is part of fire containment, but it should occur after the alarm has been activated and the fire response plan is in motion. Fire doors are designed to limit the spread of fire, but the initial priority is to alert others to the fire, activate the alarm, and ensure everyone is aware of the emergency situation.

D) Use a fire extinguisher to put out the fire: Using a fire extinguisher is appropriate if the fire is small and manageable, but activating the fire alarm is still the first priority. In cases of small fires, if safe to do so, the nurse can attempt to put it out. However, the primary focus should be on alerting everyone in the facility to the danger so that emergency protocols can be followed.

A) Changing the client's bed linens each day:
While changing bed linens regularly is important for maintaining cleanliness and preventing the spread of infection, it alone is not the most effective strategy to prevent transmission of infection. Hand hygiene before, during, and after contact with the client is a more crucial step to break the chain of infection and prevent transmission.

B) Performing hand hygiene before, during, and after direct contact with the client:
Hand hygiene is the most effective and critical strategy for preventing the transmission of infections. By performing proper hand hygiene at appropriate times, the nurse reduces the risk of spreading pathogens from the patient to themselves, other patients, and the environment. This is a key practice in infection control and is widely recognized as one of the best preventive measures.

C) Placing the client in a room with positive pressure airflow:
Positive pressure airflow is used for clients who have weakened immune systems (e.g., those with neutropenia) to protect them from infections. However, this is not the appropriate strategy for a client with an active infection, as it could potentially spread infectious agents in the environment. Infections typically require isolation with appropriate precautions like contact or droplet precautions rather than positive pressure airflow.

D) Encouraging the client to consume a high-protein diet:
Encouraging a high-protein diet is important for supporting the client's immune function and overall recovery. However, it does not directly prevent the transmission of the infection. The priority in infection control is using strategies like hand hygiene and proper isolation procedures to prevent the spread of the infection.