A nurse doing suctioning, she/he should know that once a time suction should not be applied more than?

AIIMS Delhi NO - 2017

Nursing Foundation

Easy

Appeared in: AIIMS Delhi NO - 2017

Explanation

The established clinical guideline for airway suctioning is to limit each pass to a maximum of 10 to 15 seconds.
This time limit is crucial for preventing hypoxemia (a drop in blood oxygen levels), as the procedure removes oxygen along with secretions.
Limiting the duration also minimizes the risk of trauma to the delicate tracheal mucosa, which can cause bleeding and inflammation.
Among the given choices, 10 seconds is the safest maximum duration that aligns with evidence-based practice.

Option A: While very safe, 5 seconds is often too brief to effectively clear secretions, especially if they are thick or copious. This may lead to the need for more frequent passes, which can also be traumatic.
Option C: Suctioning for 20 seconds is too long and significantly increases the risk of severe hypoxemia, cardiac arrhythmias (like bradycardia from vagal stimulation), and damage to the airway lining.
Option D: A 30-second suction pass is dangerously long and is contraindicated. It poses a very high risk of severe complications, including profound hypoxemia, bronchospasm, and even respiratory arrest.

Clinical Relevance

Nursing practice connection: Knowing Safe duration for airway suctioning helps nurses interpret findings accurately and avoid errors in routine assessment, medication administration, and patient teaching.
Adhering to the 10-15 second rule is a critical patient safety measure to prevent iatrogenic complications like hypoxemia, bradycardia, and airway trauma.
Nurses must continuously monitor the patient's oxygen saturation (SpO2) and heart rate via a pulse oximeter during the procedure and stop immediately if significant changes occur (e.g., SpO2 drops below 90% or more than 5% from baseline).
What if the patient has very thick secretions not cleared in 10 seconds? The nurse should not prolong the suction time. Instead, stop, re-oxygenate the patient for at least 1 minute, assess the patient's hydration status, and then attempt another pass. The total suctioning event should be as brief as possible.

How to Approach the Question

First, identify the core of the question: it asks for a specific time limit for the nursing procedure of suctioning.
Recognize this as a factual recall question based on a critical safety protocol in nursing.
Recall the standard guidelines for airway suctioning. The key principle is to balance effective secretion removal with minimizing patient harm, specifically hypoxemia and mucosal trauma.
Evaluate the given time options against the evidence-based standard, which is 10 to 15 seconds per pass.
Select the option that best fits this guideline. '10 seconds' is the safest maximum duration provided that allows for effective suctioning while adhering to safety protocols.

Concept Tested & Keywords

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