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The patient's wife is taking rifampin to prevent her from developing a TB infection. Which statement by the wife indicates that further teaching is needed?

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Final answer:

A patient's wife taking rifampin needs further teaching if she thinks she can stop medication once she feels better. Complete adherence to the full course of antibiotics is crucial in TB treatment to prevent drug resistance.

Step-by-step explanation:

If a patient's wife taking rifampin to prevent a TB infection believes that she can stop the medication as soon as she feels better, it indicates that further teaching is needed. The use of antibiotics in the treatment of tuberculosis requires a strict adherence to the full prescribed course, even if the symptoms have abated, to prevent the risk of developing drug-resistant strains of the disease like multidrug-resistant TB (MDR-TB) and extensively drug-resistant TB (XDR-TB). By not completing the treatment, the bacteria might not be completely eliminated, and those that survive could develop resistance to the antibiotics used, which can lead to treatment failure and further spread of the resistant strains.

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