Nursing Care
Preoperative care for a patient with appendicitis, the nurse would focus on relieving the pain and preventing infection. For relieving the pain, the nurse would monitor the pain level and note the location, extent and if there was any pattern to the pain. The nurse would assist the patient in finding a comfortable position such as “semi-fowlers and knees up” (Huether & McCrance, 2017). This would also include attempting to reduce any activity that induced pain such as “coughing or ambulation” (Huether & McCrance, 2017). They might also give the patient an ice pack to place on the abdomen to relieve some of the pain. The nurse might also administer any pain medications that can be given before the patient’s procedure however, it is important that no cathartics are administered at this time because it has the potential to rupture the appendix (Huether & McCrance, 2017). In order to prevent infection, the nurse might closely monitor the severity of the pain and if it becomes increasingly worse. The nurse would also give any antibiotics ordered before the procedure as well as prepare the …show more content…
“Within the first 24 hours the pain shifts to the right lower quadrant of the abdomen” (Huether & McCrance, 2017). When assessing the patient, it is important to still conduct a head to toe assessment regardless of a medical diagnosis of appendicitis. Once the nurse gets to the abdomen, it is important to listen to bowel sounds and to palpate lightly in the four quadrants of the stomach, noting any temperature change, pain, discoloration, or masses of the stomach. During this time the patient could also rate the pain during palpation to indicate if the area of pain worsens with palpation. It would also be important to ask the patient when their last bowel movement occurred and if it was normal compared to what it normally is for that
Preoperative care for a patient with appendicitis, the nurse would focus on relieving the pain and preventing infection. For relieving the pain, the nurse would monitor the pain level and note the location, extent and if there was any pattern to the pain. The nurse would assist the patient in finding a comfortable position such as “semi-fowlers and knees up” (Huether & McCrance, 2017). This would also include attempting to reduce any activity that induced pain such as “coughing or ambulation” (Huether & McCrance, 2017). They might also give the patient an ice pack to place on the abdomen to relieve some of the pain. The nurse might also administer any pain medications that can be given before the patient’s procedure however, it is important that no cathartics are administered at this time because it has the potential to rupture the appendix (Huether & McCrance, 2017). In order to prevent infection, the nurse might closely monitor the severity of the pain and if it becomes increasingly worse. The nurse would also give any antibiotics ordered before the procedure as well as prepare the …show more content…
“Within the first 24 hours the pain shifts to the right lower quadrant of the abdomen” (Huether & McCrance, 2017). When assessing the patient, it is important to still conduct a head to toe assessment regardless of a medical diagnosis of appendicitis. Once the nurse gets to the abdomen, it is important to listen to bowel sounds and to palpate lightly in the four quadrants of the stomach, noting any temperature change, pain, discoloration, or masses of the stomach. During this time the patient could also rate the pain during palpation to indicate if the area of pain worsens with palpation. It would also be important to ask the patient when their last bowel movement occurred and if it was normal compared to what it normally is for that