Adult Health 1 Final Exam Related

Review Adult Health 1 Final Exam related questions and content

What is the most important action to prevent complications while caring for a client receiving enteral nutrition via a nasogastric tube?

  • A. Check tube placement before each feeding
  • B. Flush the tube with water before and after each feeding
  • C. Elevate the head of the bed to 30 degrees
  • D. Administer the feeding at room temperature
Correct Answer: A

Rationale: Checking tube placement before each feeding is crucial to prevent aspiration, a serious complication of enteral nutrition. Ensuring the tube is correctly positioned in the stomach helps avoid the risk of the feeding going into the lungs, which can lead to aspiration pneumonia. Flushing the tube with water (Choice B) is important for maintaining tube patency but is not the most critical action to prevent complications. Elevating the head of the bed (Choice C) helps reduce the risk of aspiration but is not as crucial as verifying tube placement. Administering the feeding at room temperature (Choice D) is more related to patient comfort and does not directly address the prevention of complications associated with enteral nutrition via a nasogastric tube.