A nurse is going to visit a client who needs assistance with personal

A nurse is going to visit a client who needs assistance with personal hygiene and feeding. Which of the following suggestions should be made to the family?

a. “I’ll teach you how to care for your family member to keep him comfortable or, if you can afford it, you can employ an aide.”
b. “It’s important that he try to take care of himself and, if he can’t or won’t, he’ll have to deal with the consequences.”
c. “Reimbursement is available for a nurse to come to the house each day if you would like this assistance.”
d. “You can always have your family member readmitted to the hospital for care.”

ESSAYBID ANSWER

ANS: A
The only thing the nurse can do if the care needed is maintenance and assistance with activities of daily living is suggest a home health aide if the family can afford it, or teach the family how to help the client. Currently, most reimbursement for nursing services is based on the patient’s need for skilled nursing. On each patient visit, the nurse must document that the care provided is of a skilled nature that requires the knowledge and assessment skills of a nurse and must verify that the patient or a family member could not provide the same level of care.