A 23 year old patient with borderline personality disorder reports a frequent desire to cut him or herself and insists that only a specific psychiatric and mental health nurse can help the patient. The nursing care plan for the patient includes: a) Allo
In this scenario, the patient with borderline personality disorder is expressing a specific need for support and has a frequent desire to self-harm. When developing a nursing care plan for such a patient, it's essential to prioritize safety and ensure consistent and empathetic care.
Here's a breakdown of the options:
a) **Allowing the patient to choose the nurse assigned to him or her** - While this may help foster a therapeutic relationship, it could lead to issues with consistency in care if the patient repeatedly insists on a specific nurse, which might not always be possible.
b) **Decreasing the patient stimuli** - This could be helpful in managing distress, but it's not the most direct intervention regarding the patient's immediate self-harming thoughts.
c) **Holding frequent interdisciplinary staff meetings to provide consistent care** - Consistent care is crucial, especially in managing borderline personality disorder. This option helps ensure that everyone involved in the patient's care is on the same page and that the treatment approach is cohesive.
d) **Providing one-to-one suicide precautions** - This is a critical intervention to ensure the patient's safety, especially given the reported desire to self-harm.
In terms of prioritizing immediate safety and therapeutic interventions, **option D (Providing one-to-one suicide precautions)** is the most appropriate and urgent nursing care plan. Safety takes precedence when a patient expresses suicidal ideation or self-harm intentions.