Labored Breathing?

[payang0722]

Hello everyone,

It's me again, the new LVN on my 3rd day on the floor. I just have a question, I have a resident who is in Hospice Care now & how would you confirm that this person is having difficulty or labored breathing? I'll give the description:

He is lying on the bed with his knees flexed, very drowsy but responds to question but just can't totally open his eyes, all vital signs are ok, but the mouth was open (like his breathing through his mouth), I honestly can't figure out if he is having difficulty breathing since to me the rise and fall of his chest is normal, just that his mouth are partly open. Please help me some clues on how to do a good assessment especially when it comes to breathing. Thank you.

[thehipcrip]

Since he will respond to questions, you could try the age old technique of asking him if he's having trouble breathing.

If he doesn't appear to be in distress (assess him using the indicators others have mentioned), he reports he's breathing fine, and his SATs are okay, it doesn't seem like any intervention is needed at this time but he should be monitored. Some of us just sleep/doze with our mouths open.

[akulahawkRN, ADN, RN, EMT-P]

If this is the same patient from the other post, this patient was put on a fentanyl patch the same day that the OP started this thread. Could it be that my impression was actually correct?

While it's difficult to tell some things via written word, the general description gave me the impression that this patient was medicated, not in a resp. distress situation, though certain meds can very easily cause a patient to "forget" to breathe and therefore make life, well, short.