Focus On Maternity Practice Exam

In an emergency cesarean delivery, which action should the nurse take first?

Obtain a complete blood count Monitor contractions and fetal heart rate Report the time of last oral intake to the health care provider Administer acetaminophen

Correct Answer:

Report the time of last oral intake to the health care provider

Explanation:

In an emergent cesarean, the most time-sensitive factor for safety is how recently the patient has eaten because it directly changes the anesthesia plan and the risk of aspiration. The nurse should promptly communicate the time of the last oral intake to the health care provider so the team can choose the appropriate anesthesia approach and prepare for rapid sequence induction if needed. This upfront information helps prevent aspiration and keeps the operation moving quickly. Other tasks like drawing a CBC, monitoring fetal status, or giving analgesics may be important, but they do not influence the immediate risk to safety as directly as knowing whether the patient has recently eaten.

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