In providing diet education for a patient on a low-fat diet, which information is important for the nurse to share?

Choice A reason: Verbalizing understanding by repeating the technique shows comprehension but does not confirm skill. Insulin administration requires practical ability to ensure accuracy and safety. Demonstration is superior, as verbalization alone may miss errors in technique, per patient education and skill-based learning principles.

Choice B reason: Demonstrating the insulin technique back to the nurse confirms understanding and competency, ensuring safe self-administration at home. This return demonstration validates psychomotor skills, critical for correct dosing and preventing complications like hypoglycemia, aligning with effective teaching outcomes, per nursing education standards.

Choice C reason: Signing a form documents acknowledgment but not understanding or skill. Insulin administration requires observed performance to confirm competence. A signature does not verify the ability to perform the technique, risking errors, per patient education and legal documentation standards.

Choice D reason: Repeating facts shows knowledge but not practical ability to administer insulin. Technique requires psychomotor skills, assessed through demonstration. Knowledge alone may not prevent administration errors, making demonstration essential for discharge readiness, per diabetes education and skill validation protocols.

Choice A reason: Epiglottitis is an acute bacterial infection causing epiglottal swelling, primarily in children, leading to airway obstruction. Postoperative pneumonia, caused by bacterial infection or aspiration, increases mucus production and impairs gas exchange but does not typically cause epiglottal inflammation. Assessing for epiglottitis is irrelevant, as it’s unrelated to pneumonia’s pathophysiology, which involves alveolar consolidation and impaired oxygenation.

Choice B reason: Bronchospasm involves airway constriction due to smooth muscle contraction, common in asthma or COPD. Postoperative pneumonia, characterized by alveolar infection and consolidation, reduces lung compliance and gas exchange but rarely causes bronchospasm. Assessing for bronchospasm is less relevant, as pneumonia primarily affects alveoli, not bronchial smooth muscle, making this an unlikely complication to monitor.

Choice C reason: Atelectasis, the collapse of alveoli, is a common postoperative complication, especially with pneumonia, due to mucus accumulation and reduced lung expansion. This impairs gas exchange, increasing hypoxia risk. Frequent assessment for atelectasis, indicated by diminished breath sounds and hypoxemia, is critical, as it exacerbates pneumonia’s effects on alveolar ventilation and requires interventions like deep breathing exercises.

Choice D reason: Croup is a viral infection causing laryngeal and tracheal swelling, primarily in children, leading to a barking cough. Postoperative pneumonia in adults involves bacterial alveolar infection, not upper airway inflammation. Assessing for croup is inappropriate, as it’s unrelated to pneumonia’s pathophysiology, which focuses on lower respiratory tract consolidation and impaired gas exchange.