Type 1 diabetes, Hypertension - Essay Example

The monitoring of the patient’s blood glucose levels is an important nursing intervention at this point. In order to ensure speedy and efficient monitoring, the finger sticks can be used. Such monitoring must be performed on an hourly basis and after three consecutive hours of normal blood glucose levels, the monitoring may be shifted to every 2 hours (Peno-Green, n.d). However, when the levels once again fall to abnormal digits, the monitoring must be returned to once every hour (Peno-Green, n.d). In instances when the blood glucose levels exceed normal numbers anytime during the monitoring, insulin must be administered to the patient.

Monitoring of blood glucose levels is important because it can assist the health practitioners in detecting sudden and asymptomatic decrease in blood sugar; it can also help guide the practitioners in the implementation of interventions and plan of care for the patient (Harrison, 2001). Since the patient’s blood glucose levels were restored to normal levels after simple carbohydrate intake, there is no need to administer dextrose infusions of glucose. Such intervention would have been necessary if the patient had severe hypoglycaemia and did not respond to oral glucose intake (Goldstein, 2009).

Nevertheless, if (during the monitoring) the blood glucose levels would drop and would not respond to current medications, dextrose infusions of glucose can still be carried out. In the process of monitoring, the nurse must also be watchful for signs of sweating, irritability, tachycardia, confusion, dizziness, pallor, and stupor (Williams & Wilkins, 2005). Such signs can signal a hypoglycaemic crisis which may need further consult or referral to the medical practitioner. Since it is important to try to maintain the patient’s blood sugar levels – and to avoid another hypoglycaemic state, I need to constantly monitor the patient for signs of hypoglycaemia.

These signs include pale moist skin, drowsiness, and the