Daily NCLEX Question 05/14

Added: 2026-05-18

[00:00:00]All right, future nurses. Quick NCLEX challenge for you. A client receiving morphine for post-operative pain experiences respiratory depression. What is the priority nursing action? Look over this one and let us know what you think in the comments. Hold tight cuz we are about to go over this one in just a bit.

[00:00:24]All right, let's start. Let's walk through this one together. Option one, giving oxygen can help support the client, but it doesn't fix the actual problem. If the client is experiencing respiratory depression from an opioid, we have to address the opioid effect itself. Option two, notifying the healthcare provider is important, but in an emergency situation like this, you should take immediate action first before making that call. Option four, increasing the morphine infusion would be dangerous. Morphine is the opioid causing the respiratory depression. So, giving more can make the client's breathing even worse. So, the answer is option three. Administering naloxone is the priority. Naloxone reverses the effects of opioids and can quickly improve respiratory depression, which is the most life-threatening issue in this situation. Nice job, future nurses.