Drag each client to the most appropriate pain-assessment tool for the situation described.
Matrix Multiple Choice
Choose your responses, then check the answer.
Explanation
Use a numeric rating scale for clients who understand and can quantify their pain. A faces self-report scale can help children who understand the faces format. FLACC is an observational tool for infants and young children who cannot self-report. PAINAD was developed for advanced dementia, and CPOT is validated for critically ill adults who cannot communicate, including mechanically ventilated clients.
Quick answer First ask, Can this client self-report reliably? If yes, use an appropriate self-report scale; if no, match a validated behavioral tool to the population.
Why this is correct NRS and faces scales measure the client's own report. FLACC observes pediatric behaviors, PAINAD targets pain behaviors in advanced dementia, and CPOT assesses behavioral pain indicators in critically ill adults who cannot communicate.
Legacy correction The prior item assigned FLACC to an intubated adult. Adult critical-care validation studies support CPOT as the more appropriate population-specific tool.
Primary studies
1CPOT validation in adult critical care
2PAINAD development and psychometric evaluation
3Wong-Baker FACES validation in pediatric emergency care
Pain assessment across populationsUse self-report whenever the client can reliably report pain. When self-report is not possible, choose a validated behavioral tool for the client's age and clinical population.
CPOT — Critical-Care Pain Observation Tool for critically ill adults who cannot reliably self-report.
PAINAD — Pain Assessment in Advanced Dementia, an observational tool for clients with advanced dementia.
FLACC / PAINAD — FLACC for nonverbal children; PAINAD for adults with advanced dementia — both are behavioral observation tools.