Question

The nurse is planning care for an 8-year-old patient who had undergone a tonsillectomy yesterday and is having difficulty increasing fluid intake postoperatively due to incisional pain. Which of the following is an appropriate patient goal?

a)The patient will consume 1000 ml within 24 hours.
b)Provide the patient with small sips of favorite liquids.
c)Encourage the patient to take prescribed pain medications.
d)Apply an ice collar to the patient's throat if desired.

Answer 1

For an 8-year-old post-tonsillectomy patient with pain impacting fluid intake, providing small sips of favorite liquids is an appropriate care goal to encourage adequate hydration.

Step-by-step explanation:

The nurse is planning care for an 8-year-old patient who had undergone a tonsillectomy and is facing difficulty in increasing fluid intake due to pain. An appropriate patient goal for promoting increased fluid intake post-tonsillectomy in this case would be b) Provide the patient with small sips of favorite liquids. This approach is likely to be most effective because it takes into account both the patient's physical comfort and preferences, which can increase the likelihood of adequate fluid intake. Other strategies can be supplementary, such as c) Encouraging the patient to take prescribed pain medications to manage discomfort and d) Applying an ice collar to the patient's throat if this brings relief, though these are not stated as goals in the question.