Question

A nurse is providing preoperative teaching for a client who is scheduled to have a below-the-knee amputation. Which of the following instructions should the nurse include? Option 1: "You should avoid lying on your abdomen after surgery."

Option 2: "Your surgeon might prescribe an antibiotic before surgery."
Option 3: "You need to sit in a chair at the bedside for several hours every day to reduce the risk of pneumonia."
Option 4: "To promote wound healing, it is important to reduce your intake of carbohydrates once you return home.

Answer 1

The nurse should include the instruction to inform the client that the surgeon might prescribe an antibiotic before surgery to reduce the risk of hospital-acquired infections (HAI) after a below-the-knee amputation.

Step-by-step explanation:

The nurse should include the following instruction: Option 2: "Your surgeon might prescribe an antibiotic before surgery."

This instruction is important because taking a pre-surgery antibiotic can significantly reduce the risk of hospital-acquired infections (HAI). According to research, patients who are given a pre-surgery antibiotic have 0.58 times the risk of getting an HAI compared to those who do not receive the antibiotic. This means that taking the antibiotic cuts the risk of HAI by almost half.

Therefore, it is crucial for the nurse to inform the client about the possibility of receiving an antibiotic before the below-the-knee amputation surgery.