The nurse is working with a 12-year-old who is hospitalized with a chronic illness. Which action by the nurse might help the chronically ill preteen thrive while hospitalized?

Choice A reason: Asking the child about seeing her mother places an unfair burden on her, especially post-accident when she may be distressed. Verifying legal contact permissions ensures compliance with custody agreements, making this inappropriate and incorrect compared to confirming authorized visitors in this sensitive situation.

Choice B reason: Directing the mother to the room without checking custody status risks violating legal restrictions, potentially escalating conflict. Confirming who is allowed contact protects the child, making this hasty and incorrect compared to the nurse’s responsibility to verify permissions in a divorce-related hospital scenario.

Choice C reason: Asking the mother about her permission may be unreliable, as agitation could lead to inaccurate claims. Checking official records ensures adherence to custody orders, making this inadequate and incorrect compared to the nurse’s duty to verify authorized contact for the hospitalized child objectively.

Choice D reason: Checking who is allowed contact verifies legal custody arrangements, ensuring the child’s safety and compliance with court orders in a divorce situation. This aligns with pediatric hospital protocols, making it the most appropriate action to address the mother’s demand while protecting the injured daughter.

Choice A reason: Intravenous administration isn’t inherently safer, as it carries risks like infection or extravasation. Less trauma from fewer injections is accurate, making this incorrect, as it overstates safety compared to the true benefit of reduced physical and emotional trauma in pediatric IV medication delivery.

Choice B reason: Intravenous medication reduces the need for multiple injections, minimizing physical and emotional trauma for children. This aligns with pediatric nursing principles for patient comfort, making it the correct statement about the advantage of IV administration compared to repeated intramuscular or subcutaneous injections.

Choice C reason: IV medications are absorbed rapidly, not slowly, due to direct bloodstream delivery. Less trauma from fewer injections is the true benefit, making this incorrect, as it misrepresents the pharmacokinetics of intravenous administration in the context of pediatric medication delivery.

Choice D reason: IV medication is delivered into veins, not fatty tissue, which describes subcutaneous injections. Reduced trauma from fewer injections is accurate, making this incorrect, as it confuses IV administration with another route in the nurse’s understanding of medication delivery methods.