Question

The nurse is preparing an enteral feeding for a patient who will be receiving intermittent feedings via nasogastric tube for the first time. The patient is conscious. Which of the following is the priority intervention before administering this feeding?

Answer 1

Before administering an enteral feeding via nasogastric tube, confirming the evaluation of the patient's airway and risk of aspiration is the priority intervention to prevent respiratory complications.

Step-by-step explanation:

Before administering an enteral feeding via a nasogastric tube to a conscious patient, the priority intervention is to ensure that the patient's airway and risk of aspiration have been evaluated. This is a crucial step to prevent any potential respiratory complications resulting from the feeding process. Before initiation of the tube feeding, it is important to review this aspect aloud with the healthcare team, just as critical details are reviewed in a surgical time out procedure.

Confirms that all equipment required for managing an airway or aspiration event is immediately available and functioning properly. In practice, this often involves checking the tube placement, usually by aspirating stomach contents or checking the pH, to confirm that the tube is indeed in the stomach and not misplaced in the lungs, which could lead to aspiration.