Chapter 05 - Pain Assessment and Management in Children [Wong's Essentials Questions

A nurse is caring postoperatively for an 8-year-old child with multiple fractures and other trauma resulting from a motor vehicle injury. The child is experiencing severe pain. Which is an important consideration in managing the child's pain? Give only an opioid analgesic at this time. Increase the dosage of analgesic until the child is adequately sedated. Plan a preventive schedule of pain medication around the clock. Give the child a clock and explain when he or she can have pain medications. - Plan a preventive schedule of pain medication around the clock. An around-the-clock administration strategy should be used for a child recovering from trauma and surgery. This schedule will help prevent low plasma levels of the drug, leading to breakthrough pain. It is appropriate for the immediate concern of the child's pain to give an opioid analgesic, but this will not facilitate the more long-term plan of pain management. The dosage of analgesic is increased until the pain is controlled, not until sedation is adequate. The child should be frequently assessed for pain and medication doses titrated accordingly. It is inappropriate to give a child a clock with instructions as to when pain medication can be given, especially a child who has experienced a traumatic event