Final answer:
A patient's shoulder pain during a gallbladder attack should be documented as referred pain, which is pain perceived in a region of the body that is not the actual site of the pain's origin.
Step-by-step explanation:
The correct way to document a patient's shoulder pain that occurs during a gallbladder attack is as referred pain. This type of pain is the conscious perception of visceral sensations that are felt in a part of the body other than the site where the pain originates. In the case of gallbladder issues, for example, pain caused by gallstones blocking the bile duct can be felt in areas not directly connected to the gallbladder, such as the shoulder. This is thought to be due to the way that visceral sensory fibers and somatosensory fibers from different parts of the body enter into the same level of the spinal cord, leading the brain to misinterpret the source of the pain.