A Student Nurse Looks at a Patient's Chart and Does

question 173

Multiple Choice

A student nurse looks at a patient's chart and does not understand the meaning of serious sleep apnea, so she asks the head nurse for assistance. How might the head nurse describe this condition?

• A) The patient is mentally ill and tends to try to suffocate himself at times.
• B) The patient cannot sleep unless he has several pillows he uses to deaden sounds that might awaken him.
• C) The patient appears to awaken throughout the night and start walking, but he will not respond to commands.
• D) The patient has a potentially life-threatening condition in which air does not flow into or out of his nose or mouth for periods of time while he is asleep.