After giving nasogastric feed, elevate the head end of 30-60 degrees for at least?

Appeared in: KPSC Staff Nurse - 2017

Explanation

based on the standard nursing protocol for preventing aspiration after enteral feeding.
Evidence-based guidelines recommend keeping the head of the bed elevated for 30 to 60 minutes after a feeding.
This time frame allows for adequate gastric emptying, which significantly reduces the risk of gastric contents refluxing into the esophagus and being aspirated into the lungs.
Therefore, 30 minutes is the minimum required time for this safety measure.

Option A: While 40 minutes is a safe duration and falls within the recommended 30-60 minute range, it is not the minimum required time.
Option C: Similar to 40 minutes, 60 minutes is a safe and often recommended duration, but it is at the upper end of the standard range, not the minimum.
Option D: This duration is insufficient to allow for adequate gastric emptying. It poses a significant risk of regurgitation and aspiration.

Clinical Relevance

Nursing practice connection: Safe nursing care depends on performing Aspiration prevention following nasogastric (NG) tube feeding in the correct sequence, documenting the action clearly, and monitoring for the expected response.
Preventing aspiration pneumonia is a critical nursing responsibility during enteral feeding, as it is a major cause of morbidity and mortality in hospitalized patients.
Adherence to this simple positioning rule is a key patient safety intervention that every nurse must practice consistently.
What if? If a patient cannot tolerate having the head of the bed elevated due to a spinal injury or other contraindication, the nurse should consult with the provider about placing the patient in a reverse Trendelenburg position to use gravity for protection against aspiration.

How to Approach the Question

First, identify the core of the question: it's asking for the minimum time to keep the head elevated after an NG feed.
Recognize that this is a safety-related procedure question.
Recall the standard nursing guidelines for preventing aspiration with enteral feedings.
The key is to remember the specific time frame recommended by evidence-based practice, which is 30-60 minutes.
Select the option that represents the minimum value in this standard range, as the question asks for the time 'for at least'.

Concept Tested & Keywords

Concept Tested: Aspiration prevention following nasogastric (NG) tube feeding.
Stem keywords: nasogastric feed, elevate head, 30-60 degrees
Lead-in keywords: at least
Negative lead-in flag: LEAST changes the reasoning strategy; look for the exception or incorrect statement rather than the true statement.

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E6 Nursing Fundamentals Potter Perry 12e Part 5 p. 202-204

Practise the full KPSC Staff Nurse - 2017

Attempt every question from this paper in a timed mock, then review the full solution for each one.