NCLEX-RN Test Taking Strategies for Management of Care Category: How do you answer questions that involve delegating to a float nurse?

Question

The nurse manager on a medical surgical unit is assigning care to a nurse who floated from the labor and delivery unit. Which client would be best to assign to the labor and delivery nurse?

A.  The client who had an appendectomy and has prescription for ambulation.  

B.  The client who had a right below the knee amputation and has a surgical drain in place.

C.  The client with a gastrointestinal bleed and has a prescription for blood transfusion.

D.  The client with a pressure injury and requires wound care.

Answer 1

Rationale: When assigning care to a client who has floated from another unit, the nurse manager should assign clients based on the nurse’s level of experience. L & D nurses would have experience caring for clients post cesarean section, which is an abdominal surgery, so the client who had appendectomy would be appropriate. Omit patients who require more specialized care and higher acuity such as a client with a gastrointestinal bleed, BKA, and pressure injury. Post op patients would initially require assessment by the nurse to determine stability for ambulation before the UAP would ambulate the patient.