Question

While working in a family practice office, you have to complete the following three tasks: Patient A is a 2-month-old child who has just been placed in examination room 1. You are to take the vital signs and measurements, including length, weight, and head circumference. Patient B is a 14-month-old child who was seen today and diagnosed with otitis media. The physician has asked you to give the parent a prescription for an antibiotic and schedule a referral with an ear, nose, and throat physician for possible myringectomy and tubes. A mother is on the phone and is concerned because patient C, her newborn, is vomiting. How would you sort these tasks? Who would you attend to first? Second? Third? Why?

Answer 1

As a nurse I need to prioritize the patients according to their condition and should understand who should be attended first. First priority will always go to the one who needs immediate attention such as in this case will go to the third child who is a new born who is vomiting, ask the mother to stop overfeeding the baby and also provide oral rehydration solution to prevent dehydration. Advise mother not to provide supine position while the baby is vomiting as it can lead to aspiration and further complicate the condition.

Secondly, I will check the first child whose vital signs needs to be measured and thirdly I will check the second child who needs to be referred to the ENT physician.