What Should the Nurse Do?

A nursing instructor is reviewing results of a skeletal quiz taken by a group of second-semester nursing students. A true/false item included the following statement: “The primary purpose of the skull’s bony structure is to facilitate movement.” Ninety percent of the students selected “true.” What should the nurse do?

1. Score the students’ selection of “true” as correct.
2. Review the protective function of the skull again.
3. Explain the role of bone marrow in blood cell production.
4. Review the skull’s facilitation of body movement.

A patient who has injured the right foot has a weight-bearing prescription for toe-touch weight-bearing. What should the nurse do to position the patient?

1. The unaffected leg cannot bear weight or touch the floor.
2. The unaffected toes are on the floor with 25 percent weight on the affected leg.
3. Both feet are on the floor with up to 50 percent of body weight placed on the affected leg.
4. Toes of the unaffected leg are on the floor for balance, and no weight is on the affected leg.

A 16-year-old patient comes to the clinic because of bilateral foot and ankle pain and states that his mother was told when he started school that he had flat feet. What should the nurse do to assess pes planus?

1. Have the patient sit in a chair and straighten both feet in the air.
2. Ask the patient to lie prone and flex both legs at the knees.
3. Request that the patient stand up with both feet on the floor.
4. Ask the standing patient to alternate weight-bearing one leg at a time.