A staff nurse is observing a newly licensed nurse suction a client’s tracheostomy.
Which of the following actions by the newly licensed nurse requires intervention by the staff nurse?
Inserts the catheter without applying suction.
Waits for 2 min between suctions.
Applies suction for 15 seconds.
Encourages the client to cough during suctioning.
None
None
The Correct Answer is B
The correct answer is Choice B
Choice A rationale: Inserting the catheter without applying suction is correct technique. Suction should only be applied while withdrawing the catheter to prevent mucosal trauma and hypoxia. Initiating suction during insertion can damage tracheal lining and cause bradycardia due to vagal stimulation. Allowing clean insertion without suction reduces injury risk and supports effective secretion removal on withdrawal with controlled suction time.
Choice B rationale: Waiting 2 minutes between suction passes is too long and may delay secretion clearance, risking hypoxia and secretion buildup. Best practice is to wait about 30 seconds to 1 minute or until the client recovers baseline oxygen saturation and heart rate. Prolonged intervals may lead to atelectasis or respiratory distress in patients with poor reserve, especially if suctioning is incomplete or secretions are copious.
Choice C rationale: Suctioning should be limited to 10–15 seconds per pass to reduce hypoxemia and bronchospasm risks. Applying suction for 15 seconds falls within the upper acceptable range, particularly if preoxygenation is done. Extended suction beyond this can decrease PaO₂ levels rapidly. Limiting the suction time ensures safer removal of secretions while minimizing trauma and preserving adequate oxygenation.
Choice D rationale: Encouraging the client to cough facilitates mobilization of secretions toward the upper airway, making suctioning more effective. Coughing also enhances airway clearance naturally and may reduce the number of required suction passes. It is a therapeutic action in tracheostomy care that supports pulmonary hygiene, helps prevent atelectasis, and can reduce the need for deep suctioning interventions.
Nursing Test Bank
Naxlex Comprehensive Predictor Exams
Related Questions
Correct Answer is C
Explanation
This is because anticipatory guidance is a type of health teaching that involves sharing information and experiences through educational activities designed to improve health knowledge, attitudes, behaviors, and skills. Anticipatory guidance helps parents to prevent or reduce health problems in their children by providing them with information on topics such as nutrition, immunization, injury prevention, and developmenta milestones. Providing anticipatory guidance classes through public schools is an example of a population-based public health intervention that aims to improve the health of a large group of people who share common characteristics or risks.
Choice A is wrong because tertiary health interventions are not the best way to improve health for the local population. Tertiary health interventions are those that focus on treating and rehabilitating people who have already developed a disease or disability. They are more costly and less effective than primary or secondary health interventions, which aim to prevent or detect diseases early.
Encouraging rural residents to focus health spending on tertiary health interventions would not address the underlying causes of poor health in the community.
Choice B is wrong because having a nurse from outside the community provide health lectures at the county hospital is not a culturally appropriate or accessible way to deliver health education. A nurse from outside the community may not understand the needs, values, beliefs, and practices of the rural residents, and may not be able to establish trust and rapport with them. Moreover, the county hospital may not be a convenient or comfortable location for many rural residents to attend health lectures, especially if they have transportation, financial, or time barriers.
A better approach would be to involve local community members and leaders in planning and delivering health education programs that are tailored to the rural context and culture.
Choice D is wrong because launching a media campaign to increase awareness about industrial pollution is not a sufficient action to improve health for the local population. While increasing awareness is an important first step, it does not necessarily lead to behavior change or environmental improvement.
A media campaign alone would not address the sources and effects of industrial pollution, nor would it provide solutions or resources for the rural residents to protect themselves from exposure.
A more comprehensive action would be to collaborate with other stakeholders, such as environmental agencies, industry representatives, and community groups, to develop and implement strategies for reducing and monitoring industrial pollution and its impact on the environment.
Correct Answer is A
Explanation
This is part of the medication reconciliation process, which is done to avoid medication errors such as omissions, duplications, dosing errors, or drug interactions. It should be done at every transition of care in which new medications are ordered or existing orders are rewritten.
Choice B is wrong because the nurse should not encourage the client to make his own list after he returns to his home. The nurse should provide the client with an updated and accurate list of medications before discharge and instruct the client to keep it with him at all times.
Choice C is wrong because the nurse should not include any adverse effects of the medications the client might develop. The nurse should include any known allergies or adverse reactions the client has experienced in the past, but not potential adverse effects that have not occurred.
Choice D is wrong because the nurse should not exclude nutritional supplements from the list of medications the client reports. The nurse should include all prescription medications, herbals, vitamins, nutritional supplements, over-the-counter drugs, vaccines, diagnostic and contrast agents, radioactive medications, parenteral nutrition, blood derivatives, and intravenous solutions in the medication reconciliation process.
Some of these products may interact with prescribed medications or affect laboratory results.
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