A client who was recently diagnosed with anorexia nervosa collapses at an outpatient clinic. The client has hypoglycemia and hypotension. Which intervention is most important for the nurse to implement?

A client who was recently diagnosed with anorexia nervosa collapses at an outpatient clinic. The client has hypoglycemia and hypotension. Which intervention is most important for the nurse to implement?

• A. Position client with head flat and feet elevated
• B. Suggest obtaining a medical alert bracelet to be always worn.
• C. Encourage the client to eat low-carbohydrate and high-protein meals.
• D. Reinforce the need to continue the outpatient clinic therapy.

Answer: (A)

The key idea is prioritizing immediate management to restore brain oxygenation and blood flow during an acute hypoglycemic episode with low blood pressure. Lying the client flat with the legs elevated helps widen venous return to the heart and increases cerebral perfusion, which stabilizes circulation quickly while you assess glucose and plan treatment. This position supports the body’s need to improve blood flow to the brain during a crisis, making it the most urgent action. Once the client is stabilized, you would of course check blood glucose and provide rapid-acting glucose if the client can swallow or is conscious, or use IV dextrose or glucagon if the client is unable to swallow or is unconscious. The other proposed actions—wearing a medical alert bracelet, adjusting diet to low-carbohydrate/high-protein, or continuing outpatient therapy without addressing the emergency—do not address the immediate danger the patient is experiencing.

The key idea is prioritizing immediate management to restore brain oxygenation and blood flow during an acute hypoglycemic episode with low blood pressure. Lying the client flat with the legs elevated helps widen venous return to the heart and increases cerebral perfusion, which stabilizes circulation quickly while you assess glucose and plan treatment. This position supports the body’s need to improve blood flow to the brain during a crisis, making it the most urgent action.

Once the client is stabilized, you would of course check blood glucose and provide rapid-acting glucose if the client can swallow or is conscious, or use IV dextrose or glucagon if the client is unable to swallow or is unconscious. The other proposed actions—wearing a medical alert bracelet, adjusting diet to low-carbohydrate/high-protein, or continuing outpatient therapy without addressing the emergency—do not address the immediate danger the patient is experiencing.