Ayden is a radiological technician who must perform a chest x-ray on a 25-year-old female patient. Ayden knows that it is important to make sure that the patient is not pregnant because, if so, the x-ray might be damaging to her fetus. Ayden looks at the chart and does not note anything about pregnancy. What would be the BEST way for Ayden to make sure this record is accurate?

Question

Ayden is a radiological technician who must perform a chest x-ray on a 25-year-old female patient. Ayden knows that it is important to make sure that the patient is not pregnant because, if so, the x-ray might be damaging to her fetus. Ayden looks at the chart and does not note anything about pregnancy. What would be the BEST way for Ayden to make sure this record is accurate?

A. Look at the patient and determine if she is pregnant.

B. Ask the patient to verify that she is not pregnant.

C. Call the intake nurse to ask if she got the correct information.

D. Have the patient take a pregnancy test before the x-ray.

Answer 1

The best way for Ayden to make sure this record is accurate is option D, have the patient take a pregnancy test before the x-ray. This is because it is not reliable to solely rely on visual observation (option A) to determine pregnancy, and asking the patient to verify (option B) may not always be accurate. Calling the intake nurse (option C) is also not a reliable method as it may introduce the possibility of miscommunication. Taking a pregnancy test before the x-ray is the most accurate and reliable method to confirm the patient's pregnancy status.