Question

An elderly patient is admitted to the hospital for treatment of a fractured femur. The patient's spouse tells the nurse that the patient has become very hard of hearing. The nurse might expect the patient to exhibit which of the following characteristics?

1) The patient prefers to be left alone.
2) The patient appears suspicious of strangers.
3) The patient communicates best in writing.
4) The patient's speech is difficult to understand.

Answer 1

When an elderly patient becomes hard of hearing, they may exhibit difficulty understanding and communicating with others, resulting in speech that is difficult to understand.

Step-by-step explanation:

When an elderly patient becomes hard of hearing, they are likely to exhibit difficulties in understanding and communicating with others. This can manifest in different ways, but the characteristic that the nurse might expect to see is that the patient's speech is difficult to understand. Due to the hearing impairment, the patient may have trouble perceiving higher frequencies, making speech sound indistinct.