How frequently should a nurse change the position of a bedridden patient to prevent bedsores - RUHS, Jaipur, M.Sc Nursing Entrance Exam-2024

RUHS, Jaipur, M.Sc Nursing Entrance Exam-2024

Nursing Foundation

Easy

Appeared in: RUHS, Jaipur, M.Sc Nursing Entrance Exam-2024

Explanation

Repositioning a bedridden patient every 2 hours is the established, evidence-based standard of care for preventing pressure ulcers.
This frequency effectively relieves pressure on bony prominences (like the sacrum, heels, and hips), which restores blood flow and oxygen to the tissues.
This interval balances the physiological need for pressure relief with the patient's need for comfort and rest.
Longer intervals increase the risk of tissue ischemia (lack of oxygen), which can lead to irreversible skin and underlying tissue damage.

Option A: Repositioning every 30 minutes is generally too frequent and impractical. It can disrupt the patient's sleep and comfort without providing significant additional benefit over a 2-hour schedule for most individuals.
Option B: While not necessarily harmful, turning every hour is more frequent than the standard guideline. The 2-hour interval is widely accepted as sufficient for most at-risk patients.
Option D: An interval of 4 hours is too long between position changes. It allows for prolonged periods of pressure, significantly increasing the risk of tissue ischemia and the development of pressure ulcers.

Clinical Relevance

Nursing practice connection: Use the key finding related to Pressure ulcer (bedsore) prevention through patient repositioning to guide bedside assessment, documentation, and the next nursing action.
Implementing and documenting a consistent turning schedule is a fundamental nursing responsibility to maintain skin integrity and prevent pressure ulcers, which are considered a key indicator of nursing care quality.
Nurses must use a validated risk assessment tool, like the Braden Scale, to identify at-risk patients and individualize the frequency of repositioning. A lower score indicates a higher risk, potentially requiring more frequent turns.
Patient and family education is crucial. The nurse should teach the family why repositioning is important and how to do it safely at home.

How to Approach the Question

First, identify the keywords in the question: 'bedridden patient', 'change position', 'prevent bedsores', and 'how frequently'.
Recognize that this question is asking for a standard nursing protocol or clinical guideline.
Recall the evidence-based practice standard for pressure ulcer prevention in immobile patients.
Evaluate the given time intervals against this standard. 'Every 30 mins' and 'Every 1 hour' are typically more frequent than the standard, while 'Every 4 hours' is too infrequent and poses a risk.
Select 'Every 2 hours' as it is the most widely accepted and practiced guideline for this patient population.

Concept Tested & Keywords

Concept Tested: Pressure ulcer (bedsore) prevention through patient repositioning.
Stem keywords: bedridden patient, change position, prevent bedsores, frequently
Lead-in keywords: How frequently
Clinical cues: The term 'bedridden patient' is a key clinical cue indicating immobility and high risk for pressure ulcers.

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