Question

"Which nursing intervention is beneficial while administering a bitter medication to a child?

1.Reducing the dose of the medication
2.Offering the child a frozen juice bar
3.Replacing the medication with another medication
4.Mixing the medication in the child's favorite food"

Answer 1

Offering a child a frozen juice bar can be a helpful nursing intervention when administering a bitter medication, as it helps to numb the taste buds and provide a sweet counter flavor which can make the medicine more palatable.

Step-by-step explanation:

While administering a bitter medication to a child, one beneficial nursing intervention is offering the child a frozen juice bar. This is because bitter tastes can stimulate the gag reflex, which is a protective mechanism to avoid ingesting poisons. Since the highest concentration of bitter receptors is located at the posterior tongue, having something cold and sweet, like a frozen juice bar, can help make the medication more palatable by numbing the taste buds momentarily and providing a pleasant taste to counteract the bitterness.