Free Maternity Nursing: Postpartum Questions and Answers — Questions and Answers
Question 1: A woman who has just given birth to a healthy newborn baby is about to receive postpartum care from a postpartum nurse. The nurse intends to take the mother's vital signs in the early postpartum period:
- Every 15 minutes during the first hour and then every 30 minutes for the next two hours. (Correct answer)
- Every hour for the first 2 hours and then every 4 hours.
- Every 5 minutes for the first 30 minutes and then every hour for the next 4 hours.
- Every 30 minutes during the first hour and then every hour for the next two hours.
Correct answer: Every 15 minutes during the first hour and then every 30 minutes for the next two hours.
The first 6 to 12 hours postpartum are considered to be the first or acute stage. There is a chance for urgent emergencies such postpartum hemorrhage, uterine inversion, amniotic fluid embolism, and eclampsia during this period of fast transformation.
Question 2: A woman who just gave birth to a healthy newborn baby four hours ago is having her vital signs taken by a postpartum nurse. The mother's temperature is 100.2°F, the nurse reports. Which of the following would be the best course of action?
- Document the findings.
- Increase hydration by encouraging oral fluids (Correct answer)
- Retake the temperature in 15 minutes.
- Notify the physician
Correct answer: Increase hydration by encouraging oral fluids
While the mother is awake, her temperature can be taken every four hours. In the first 24 hours following delivery, temperatures as high as 100.4 F (38 C) are frequently attributed to the dehydrating effects of labor. The best course of action is to encourage oral fluid intake in order to enhance hydration, which should return the temperature to normal.
Question 3: Six hours postpartum (PP) after delivering a full-term healthy infant, the client is being evaluated by the nurse. The customer complains to the nurse of feeling lightheaded and faint. Which of the following nurse interventions would be ideal?
- Inform the nursery room nurse to avoid bringing the newborn infant to the mother until the feelings of lightheadedness and dizziness have subsided.
- Obtain hemoglobin and hematocrit levels.
- Instruct the mother to request help when getting out of bed. (Correct answer)
- Elevate the mother’s legs.
Correct answer: Instruct the mother to request help when getting out of bed.
During the first eight hours following birth, orthostatic hypotension may be visible. Feelings of dizziness or faintness are indicators that the client's safety should be taken into consideration by the nurse. The first few times the mother gets out of bed, the nurse should suggest that she seek assistance.
Question 4: To conduct a foundational assessment on a postpartum patients, a nurse is getting ready. Which of the following is the first nursing intervention in this assessment?
- Massage the fundus gently before determining the level of the fundus.
- Ask the client to turn on her side.
- Ask the client to lie flat on her back with the knees and legs flat and straight.
- Ask the mother to urinate and empty her bladder. (Correct answer)
Correct answer: Ask the mother to urinate and empty her bladder.
The nurse should ask the mother to empty her bladder before beginning the fundal assessment in order to perform it accurately. The six to eight weeks following delivery, or from the moment of birth, are included in the postpartum recovery period. As the mother's body returns to pre-pregnancy conditions, this is a time of healing and renewal.
Question 5: A day one PP patient's lochia is being evaluated by the nurse. The nurse remarks that the lochia is crimson and smells bad. This evaluation finding is determined to be by the nurse to be:
- Indicates the presence of infection. (Correct answer)
- Indicates the need for increasing oral fluids.
- Indicates the need for increasing ambulation.
- Normal
Correct answer: Indicates the presence of infection.
For the first one to three days after birth, the discharge known as lochia is red and gradually lessens in volume. It is abnormal to encounter lochia that smells bad or is purulent because these symptoms typically imply infection. Large chunks of tissue, blood clots, an unpleasant odor, or the absence of lochia could all be symptoms of infection.
Question 6: The nurse observes clots in the lochia while conducting a PP assessment on the client. After looking at the clots closely, the nurse determines that they are greater than 1 cm. Which of the following nursing interventions is ideal?
- Notify the physician. (Correct answer)
- Reassess the client in 2 hours.
- Encourage increased intake of fluids.
- Document the findings.
Correct answer: Notify the physician.
Normal results of blood pooling in the vagina include a few tiny clots in the first one to two days following delivery. Larger than 1 cm clots are regarded as abnormal. To stop additional bleeding, the cause of these clots, such as uterine atony or residual placental pieces, must be identified and addressed.
Question 7: A mother is receiving advice from a nurse in a PP unit about lochia and the amount of anticipated lochia drainage. The nurse informs the mother that while the typical dosage of lochia may change, it should never go beyond what is necessary for:
- Eight peripads per day. (Correct answer)
- Three peripads per day.
- Two peripads per day.
- One peripad per day.
Correct answer: Eight peripads per day.
Depending on the individual, the recommended daily intake of lochia may range from 4 to 8 peripads. Six peripads are used on average each day. Excessive blood loss during or after the third stage of labor is referred to as postpartum hemorrhage. 500 mL of blood are lost on average after vaginal delivery and 1000 mL with cesarean section.
