1. PAIN
Wrenda Fisher, a 35-year-old mother of 2, visits the pain clinic of the regional
medical center in her community. Wrenda is interviewed by a certified pain
management nurse. Her chief complaint is recent onset back pain, which has
limited her ability to care for her children.
During the nurse's initial interview, Wrenda shares information about her home,
career, and family. The nurse evaluates the information to determine psychosocial
factors that may impact pain management.
1.
Which information, obtained by the nurse, is most likely to influence Wrenda's
perception of her pain?
A) Wrenda's younger child is an infant, who feeds every 3 hours.
CORRECT
Feeding an infant every 3 hours interrupts sleep and results in fatigue. Fatigue
often heightens the perception of pain and impairs coping skills.
B) Wrenda's 4-year-old enjoys being the "big brother" to his baby
2.
To assess the quality of Wrenda's pain, the nurse asks which question?
B) "What word best describes the pain you are experiencing?"
CORRECT
The quality of pain experienced is typically a descriptive term, such as burning,
crushing, aching, or stabbing.
3.
Which behavior that Wrenda exhibits supports her subjective report of acute pain?
D) Frequent guarding.
CORRECT
Guarding, or protecting the painful area, is a common behavioral response to
pain.
Nursing Process
After completing the pain assessment, the nurse develops a plan of care. The nurse
identifies pain and anxiety as the priority problems.
4.
To determine the etiology of Wrenda's anxiety, what is the priority nursing
intervention?
B) Continue the interview with the client.
CORRECT
Further assessment by the nurse is needed to determine the cause of the client’s
anxiety.
5.
What is the best goal for the nurse to include in the plan of care related to the
problem statement of, "Acute pain related to strain on muscles with movement?"

2. A) Client reports pain of 1 on a 0-10 scale.
CORRECT
The goal is a broad statement that reflects a positive direction for the client's
problem, in this case, acute pain.
The nurse considers interventions to include in the plan of care.
6.
Before implementing any interventions, what action is most important for the nurse
to take?
D) Discuss the plan of care with the client.
CORRECT
After considering interventions to implement, the nurse should review the plan of
care with the client and seek client input.
Non-Steroidal Antiinflammatory Drugs (NSAIDs)
The nurse consults with the clinic director, a pain management physician, who
recommends the use of NSAIDs and alternating heat and cold applications, as well
as back exercises. The nurse provides client teaching about these treatments.
Wrenda tells the nurse that she will take the acetaminophen (Tylenol) that she
already has at home.
7.
What instruction should the nurse provide?
D) Tylenol does not have an antiinflammatory effect.
CORRECT
Acetominophen (Tylenol) is an effective analgesic and antipyretic, but it does not
have an antiinflammatory effect.
PAIN
Wrenda decides to purchase buffered aspirin and asks if this medication is also safe
to give her 4-year-old son since he occasionally experiences viral infections and
becomes feverish.
8.What information should the nurse include in responding to Wrenda?
C) All aspirin products should be avoided in children unless specifically prescribed.
CORRECT
Aspirin products seem to be associated with Reye Syndrome in children and should
be avoided unless specifically prescribed.
Application of Heat and Cold
Wrenda tells the nurse that she has an electric heating pad at home that she used
when she sprained her ankle.
9.How should the nurse respond?
D) "The dry heat provided by your heating pad will help relieve your pain by
promoting muscle relaxation."
CORRECT

3. Heat, whether dry or moist, promotes muscle relaxation and relief of pain caused
by stiffness or spasm.
Wrenda states that she has also been applying a cold pack an hour at a time to help
heal her back as quickly as possible.
10.Which instruction is most important for the nurse to provide?
D) Excessive exposure to cold can damage the skin.
CORRECT
In response to the client's statement, the nurse should educate the client on safe
application of the cold pack. The other information can then be included in the
instructions. The nurse further explains that the cold should only be applied as
prescribed, for 20 to 30 minutes at a time. The nurse tells Wrenda to remove the
cold pack if her skin appears reddened before the prescribed time period has
elapsed.
11.How should the nurse explain the mechanism that causes the skin to
become reddened from prolonged exposure to cold?
A) Reflex vasodilation occurs following the initial vasoconstricting effects of cold.
CORRECT
Cold causes vasoconstriction. After prolonged exposure, reflex vasodilation occurs
to restore adequate blood supply to the tissues.
TENS Unit
Wrenda returns to the pain clinic in a week and reports that her pain has worsened.
The pain management physician recommends the use of a Transcutaneous Electrical
Nerve Stimulator (TENS) unit and prescribes a schedule IV opioid analgesic. Wrenda
states to the nurse that she is familiar with the TENS Unit, calling it a biofeedback
treatment.
12.What is the best response by the nurse?
B) "Pain relief is actually provided by delivering small electrical currents to the
skin."
CORRECT
TENS (transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation) is considered a type of
cutaneous stimulation in which electrodes attached to a battery-operated unit
stimulate the skin and underlying tissues near the area of localized pain.
The nurse explains the use of the TENS unit and demonstrates how to apply it.
13.Which instruction(s) should the nurse include? (Select all that apply.)
B) Be sure to use conducting gel or conductor pads when applying the electrodes to
the skin.
CORRECT
Conducting gel or conductor pads are applied before attaching the electrodes to the
skin to promote safe, effective conduction of the electrical current and reduce the
possibility of injury to the client.

4. E) Clean the skin where the electrodes will be placed and dry thoroughly.
CORRECT
If the skin is not clean and dry the electrodes will not adhere to the skin.
Scheduled (controlled) Drugs
In addition to the TENS Unit, Wrenda has a prescription for a Schedule IV analgesic.
The nurse recognizes that specific protocols are followed when a client is receiving
scheduled (controlled) medications.
14.
What characteristic of scheduled drugs results in the need for these specific
protocols?
C) There is a high potential for abuse.
CORRECT
Scheduled (controlled) medications are those mediations determined to have a high
abuse potential, so specific controls are designated to reduce access to these
medications.
The clinic stocks a small number of scheduled medications, so the nurse obtains a
dose of the prescribed medication for Wrenda. At the end of the shift, the nurse
counts the remaining medications with the oncoming nurse and notes that the
count is not accurate.
15.What action should the nurse implement?
C) Review prescriptions for any scheduled drugs with all nurses with access to the
medications to determine why the count is inaccurate.
CORRECT
The nurse should first consult with all nurses with access to the medications to
determine if a medication was given to a client without proper documentation. This
action will frequently resolve the discrepancy. If it does not, the nurse-manager
should be consulted for further action to be taken based on the policy of the
agency.
Medication Administration: Intramuscular Injection
Five days later Wrenda returns to the pain clinic reporting that the medication,
TENS unit, and other care measures have not been successful in reducing her pain,
and that, in fact, the pain seems to be worsening. Wrenda is admitted to the
medical center via the Emergency Department for diagnostic tests and pain
management.
While Wrenda is in the emergency department, the healthcare provider prescribes
an intramuscular (IM) injection of 60 mg of ketorolac (Toradol), a nonsteroidal
antiinflammatory agent.
16.The medication comes in a pre-loaded syringe labeled "30 mg/ml." How
many ml should the nurse expect to administer? (Enter the numerical value
only. If rounding is required, round to the whole number.)
2

5. CORRECT
30 mg/1 ml = 60 mg/x
30x = 60 ml
x = 2 ml
17.
Since Wrenda is fairly thin, which site is the best choice for the injection?
B) Ventrogluteal.
CORRECT
Two mls of medication (the amount needed for this prescription) can safely be
injected into the ventrogluteal site of most people, even a thin person such as this
client.
18.The nurse will first place the palm of the hand on what anatomical spot
to locate the injection site?
C) The greater trochanter.
CORRECT
The nurse places the palm of the hand over the greater trochanter of the client's
hip. The index finger is pointed toward the anterosuperior iliac spine and the middle
finger toward the iliac crest.
19.
Once the needle is inserted in the skin, what intervention should the nurse
perform?
B) Pull back on the syringe plunger and observe for blood.
CORRECT
Aspiration for blood reduces the risk of injecting the medication into a capillary. If
blood is observed in the syringe, the needle should be withdrawn and a new dose of
medication prepared.
Relaxation and Guided Imagery
After completing Wrenda's admission to the medical unit, the staff nurse offers to
guide Wrenda through a series of relaxation exercises. The nurse first plans to
assist Wrenda with a guided imagery exercise. Wrenda states she would like to sit
in the armchair in the room and identifies the image of watching a mountain sunset
as being relaxing to her.
20.
To ensure that the exercise is most effective, what action should the nurse
implement?
C) Include as many sensory images as possible in the experience.
CORRECT
As the client creates an image in her mind, awareness of pain diminishes.
Promoting the use of all the senses heightens the client's awareness of the image,
further diminishing the awareness of pain.

6. Wrenda states the guided imagery exercise was helpful, and she is interested in
learning additional exercises. The nurse guides Wrenda in a progressive relaxation
activity. After first establishing a regular breathing pattern, the nurse tells Wrenda
to locate an area where she can feel muscle tension.
21.
What instruction should the nurse provide next?
D) Tense the muscle fully.
CORRECT
Once the muscle tension is identified, the client first tenses the muscle fully, then
relaxes the muscle completely. In time, the client will be able to relax the tense
muscles without first tensing them more fully. Other forms of non-pharmacologic
pain-relief interventions include acupressure, distraction, music, biofeedback, and
self-hypnosis. All of these measures can assist in pain management and provide the
client with a sense of self-control.
Intravenous Patient-Controlled Analgesia (PCA)
Further assessment and testing indicates that Wrenda has a back problem that
requires surgery, which is scheduled for the next day. The nurse knows that a
patient-controlled analgesia (PCA) pump will be prescribed as part of Wrenda's
postoperative care.
22.
When is the best time to teach Wrenda about use of the PCA?
A) The day before the surgery is scheduled.
CORRECT
Teaching is best provided before surgery, while the client is awake and alert and not
experiencing acute postoperative pain.
Following surgery, Wrenda returns to the nursing unit with an intravenous infusion
and patient-controlled analgesia (PCA) pump. The prescription states, "Morphine
sulfate 0.5 mg/hour infusion with additional demand dose of 1 mg every 6 minutes.
Hourly limit of 10 mg."
Prior to giving report to the oncoming nurse, the nurse reviews Wrenda's usage of
the PCA pump and determines that she has received 4 demand doses of morphine
each hour for the last 4 hours.

7. 23.
What is the total dosage of morphine that Wrenda has received in the last 4 hours?
C) 18 mg.
CORRECT
Wrenda receives a continuous infusion of 0.5 mg/hour, for a total of 2 mg in 4
hours. Each demand dose is 1 mg. She self-administered 4 doses per hour, for a
total of 4 mg/hour for each of 4 hours, for a total of 16 mg. This is added to the
amount in the continuous infusion, for a final total dose of 18 mg of morphine
received in the last 4 hours.
On the second postoperative day, the nurse observes that Wrenda is no longer selfadministering demand doses of the morphine.
24.
What is the most likely reason for this change?
A) She is receiving adequate pain control without the additional doses.
CORRECT
The most likely explanation for no longer self-administering a demand dose is that
the client's pain has decreased or is controlled effectively by other measures.
Use of Adjuvant Medications
The nurse assesses Wrenda's pain and determines that the evaluation of her use of
the PCA pump is correct. Wrenda's pain has lessened, and she no longer needs any
demand doses of morphine. The nurse consults with the surgeon, and the morphine
is discontinued. Wrenda's new prescription is for hydrocodone/acetaminophen
(Vicodin), a medication that combines hydrocodone with acetaminophen.
25.
What is the rationale for combining these 2 ingredients?
B) The synergistic effect of the 2 medications improves pain control.
CORRECT
A synergistic effect is one in which 2 medications work together to provide an
increased effect. Non-opioids, such as acetaminophen, are often used in
combination with opioids so that a lower dose of the opioid can be used while still
providing effective analgesia.
Wrenda has also been receiving docusate sodium (Colace), a stool softener. She
asks the nurse if this needs to be continued.
26.
How should the nurse respond?
D) "You may need to continue the docusate sodium (Colace) because most opioid
analgesics, including hydrocodone/acetaminophen (Vicodin), cause constipation."
CORRECT

8. All opioid analgesics, including both morphine and hydrocodone/acetaminophen,
can be constipating, so the nurse should instruct the client to continue the stool
softener until determining the change in bowel patterns that results from the
change in the analgesic.
Ethical Issues
The nurse overhears two other nurses discussing Wrenda's pain management in the
hallway. One nurse states that Wrenda is exhibiting drug-seeking behavior and is
probably already addicted to her pain medications.
27.
What is the priority nursing intervention?
C) Arrange to continue the conversation in a more private location.
CORRECT
The nurse must act as a client advocate, protecting the client's privacy. Discussing
the client's behavior in the hallway violates her right to privacy.
Wrenda's nurse believes that the other nurses are incorrect in their understanding
of Wrenda's pain management. The nurse explains this to the other nurses,
providing the nurses with accurate information about pain management and
addiction.
28.
The nurse's response demonstrates what ethical principle?
A) Veracity.
CORRECT
Veracity refers to practicing truthfulness.
Case Outcome
Wrenda is discharged the next day. She returns to the clinic in 2 weeks, reporting
that she is experiencing mild back pain and only takes NSAIDs occasionally for the
pain. She continues to practice her relaxation exercises, which enable her to feel a
sense of control when the pain worsens and threatens her ability to care for her
family.
references
primarypsychiatry.com
http://www.moondragon.org/health/therapy/tens.html
divingaccessorysystems.com