RN Nursing · Therapeutic Communication · Practice question
Which action by the nurse demonstrates respect for the patient as an individual?
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The nurse is providing care to an older adult client and calls the client "Mom."
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✓
The nurse is administering medication to a client the nurse addressed as "Ms. Taylor."
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The nurse is giving a report to another nurse about "the gallbladder client."
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The nurse asks the aide to provide a bath for "the motor vehicle accident (MVA) client."
Answer & explanation
Correct: The nurse is administering medication to a client the nurse addressed as "Ms. Taylor."
Respecting a patient as an individual includes addressing them by their preferred name, maintaining their dignity, and avoiding depersonalizing language. Addressing the client as 'Ms. Taylor' uses the client's actual name and title, acknowledging her as a person with an identity rather than reducing her to a diagnosis or role. This is a foundational principle of patient-centered, therapeutic nursing care. Calling an older adult client 'Mom' is inappropriate and patronizing; it presumes familiarity, infantilizes the client, and disregards her individual identity. Referring to a patient as 'the gallbladder client' reduces a person to a body part or medical condition, which is dehumanizing and violates the ethical principle of human dignity. Similarly, referring to a patient as 'the MVA client' depersonalizes the individual by labeling her with her injury mechanism. Both of these latter examples represent common but problematic habits in healthcare communication. Nurses should consistently use the client's name and confirm the preferred form of address at the outset of care to honor individuality and promote trust in the therapeutic relationship.
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