A client comes to the emergency department with injuries to her upper

A client comes to the emergency department with injuries to her upper shoulders and back area. When questioned about how the injuries occurred, the client becomes less talkative and states that she “fell.”

The client has a history of frequent ED visits, always with believable excuses about how her injuries occurred. The nurse begins to suspect that this client is a victim of abuse. This is an example of the nurse making which of the following?
1. Observation of cues
2. Validation
3. Inference
4. Judgment

ANSWER

Correct Answer: 3
Rationale: Inferences are the nurse’s interpretations of conclusions made based on the cues, which in this case would be the frequent visits to the emergency department and the client’s injuries. Data must be based on cues, and the nurse must be careful not to jump to conclusions. Validation is the act of “double-checking” or verifying data to confirm that they are accurate and factual. Judgment is not part of validation.