For which client should the nurse prioritize assessment?

Prioritizing assessment in nursing involves identifying which client situation poses the most immediate risk or requires urgent attention. In this case, the focus should be on the client with hypertrophic cardiomyopathy experiencing dyspnea.

Hypertrophic cardiomyopathy is a condition characterized by the thickening of the heart muscle, which can impede proper heart function and lead to serious complications. When a patient with this condition reports dyspnea, it indicates that they may be experiencing difficulty breathing, which could be a sign of worsening heart function, decreased cardiac output, or even heart failure. This can quickly escalate to a life-threatening situation if not addressed promptly.

Assessing the client with dyspnea allows for early identification of potential complications and the initiation of interventions to alleviate respiratory distress, such as administering oxygen or medications to improve cardiac function.

In contrast, while the other clients may have significant health concerns—such as increased chest pain in pericarditis, fever in cystic fibrosis, and worsening facial pain in rhinosinusitis—they do not necessarily indicate an immediate threat to life or the need for urgent intervention as dyspnea in the context of hypertrophic cardiomyopathy does. Prioritizing the dyspnea allows for timely assessment and management of a potentially