Question

A patient has a diagnosis of psoriasis. Her nurse aide should

a. avoid contact with the highly contagious lesions.
b. wear gloves for patient care.
c. wear a mask when entering the room.
d. treat her the same as any other patient with a non-infectious disease.

Answer 1

Nurse aides should wear gloves for patient care when dealing with a psoriasis patient but treat them similarly to other patients with non-infectious diseases, as psoriasis is not highly contagious.

Step-by-step explanation:

A patient diagnosed with psoriasis should be treated with care due to the potential for skin transmission, but not like a patient with a highly infectious disease. Psoriasis is not highly contagious, it's an autoimmune disorder involving abnormal skin cell turnover leading to thickened, scaly patches. The nurse aide should wear gloves for patient care to protect both the patient and themselves, as skin can be a vector for transmitting infections, especially when compromised as in psoriasis. They don't need to wear a mask unless they are protecting the patient from their own respiratory infections or following other specific infection control protocols.

Therefore, the nurse aide should treat her the same as any other patient with a non-infectious disease, with the addition of standard precautions like wearing gloves.