You respond quickly to a call but the patient is already dead when you arrive. The patient's brother becomes very angry with you, even though it is clear that the patient would have died even if you had arrived earlier. What should you do?
A. Apologize for not arriving in time to save the patient, because the brother is in denial.
B. Advise the brother to move out of the anger stage and into acceptance, since there is nothing to be done for the patient.
C. Remain tolerant and recognize that anger is part of the way people deal with death.
D. Remind the brother that you got there as fast as you could and that the patient was a hopeless case.
Answer: C
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Your patient's car was hit on the driver's side by the driver's door. Your patient states that he has pain in the upper left quadrant. You suspect an injury to the:
A) spleen. B) stomach. C) kidneys. D) liver.
Your patient is a 48-year-old female who is alert and oriented after a possible seizure. Her friends state they witnessed her slump to the floor and "shake" for about 15 seconds. She awoke in less than 1 minute and was "a bit groggy" for a few minutes. She does not believe she had a seizure but thinks she may have fainted. Which of the following questions is least important when differentiating seizure and syncope?
A) "Are you allergic to any medications?" B) "What kind of medications do you take?" C) "Do you have a history of seizures?" D) "What happened just before the event?"