Hypoglycemic Shock

The patient is a 58-year-old female with Type 1 diabetes who is status post laparoscopic cholecystectomy. A tired, uncooperative nurse gives handoff to the learner who then performs an initial assessment. In that assessment, the learner should recognize that the patient has low blood sugar and is altered from baseline. The learner must then promptly administer dextrose intravenously after which the patient begins to improve and can be given food or juice. The learner should then communicate the event to the physician. If these steps are not done promptly, the patient worsens. The moderator can provide hints through dialogue from the family to clue the learner to the appropriate actions.

Learning Objectives

– Perform a nursing assessment of a patient with diabetes
– Identify and treat a hypoglycemic episode
– Communicate an event to the physician on the care team