Answers)
1. Acute pain: Current, less than 6 months of pain
2. Chronic pain: Pain experienced for more than 6 months
3. When to do a pain reassessment?: Assess respirations, LOC, and ettectiveness with in 30 minutes
to 1 hour.
4. What is pain?: Whatever the experiencing person says it is, existing wherever they say it does.
5. Who is the primary source of pain information?: The patient
6. Objective signs of pain: Tachycardia, tachypnea, diaphoreses, sleep disturbances, hypertension, nausea,
and guarding
7. Pain scales: Visual analog (visual of numbers scale)
Numerical Rating Scale
Wong-Baker (faces scale)
FLACC scale (face, legs, activity, cry, and consolability) for kids form 2 months to 7 years
CRIES scale used for neonates
8. Define anesthesia: The state of depressed CNS activity, marked by decreased LOC to stimulation, and or
muscle relaxation.
9. Define analgesia: Absence of pain
10. PCA: Patient controlled analgesia. Provides IV and SQ medicaiton delievery that will potentially improve pain
management for the patient and provide a better sense of personal control over pain. Safe and ettective way to deliver
opioids by incremental doses and/or continuous infusion and allow clients to become involved in their own care.
Programed to give specified amount within a given time interval.
11. Opioid Naive: Patients who have not been taking opioids regularly.
12. Opioid tolerant: Patient who have been taking opioids regularly for SEVEN days or more.
13. What is nocturnal hypoxia: Assess rate, depth, and rhythm of respirations while patient is ASLEEP! Do
not waken and then assess. Patients with induced respiratory depression or over sedation can easily be stimulated to
a higher level of consciousness and an increased respiratory rate.
14. When assessing a patient on PCA therapy if the nurse finds the patient to be
somnolent with minimal or no response to physical stimulation what should
they do?: Immediately stop the medication infusion and notify the primary care provider. Prepare to administer
oxygen and narcotic antagonist such as Narcan.
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