NU142CL Unit 2 Patient Workup Example

Course	NU142CL Medical-Surgical Nursing I Clinical
Unit	Unit 2
Paper type	Patient workup
Length	About 570 words, 5 pages double-spaced
Format	APA 7 student paper
School	Purdue University Global
Program	BSN (prelicensure)
Updated	October 2026

Free sample paper for NU142CL Unit 2

Chosen for What Matters Before Surgery: A Patient Workup for a Composite 69-Year-Old Man Admitted With Acute Cholecystitis and Awaiting Laparoscopic Removal, With Data Selected for Relevance Rather Than Copied in Full

[Student Name]

Purdue University Global

NU142CL: Medical-Surgical Nursing I Clinical

Unit 2 Patient Workup

[Instructor Name]

[Date]

The patient is composite; values are bracketed where illustrative, and the workup uses a coded label without identifiers.

What this part is doingThe workup is graded on selection, so every item included is there because it shapes the shift's care.

Patient Summary

Patient V, a composite 69-year-old retired bus driver identified by a coded label as student paperwork requires (Potter et al., 2023), was admitted last night with right upper abdominal pain for two days, fever and nausea. Ultrasound showed gallstones, a thickened gallbladder wall and fluid around it, consistent with acute cholecystitis. He has type 2 diabetes managed with metformin, high blood pressure on amlodipine, and takes aspirin [81] mg daily. Surgery is planned for tomorrow morning. Acute cholecystitis usually results from a stone blocking the cystic duct, leading to inflammation and sometimes infection of the gallbladder; early laparoscopic removal is the usual treatment (Gallaher & Charles, 2022).

Selected Data

Vital signs this morning: temperature [38.1] C, heart rate [96], blood pressure [138/84], respirations [18], saturation [96] percent on room air. Pain [6] out of 10 in the right upper abdomen, worse with deep breaths; tender with guarding below the right ribs. White blood cell count [14,200]; bilirubin [1.1] mg/dL, normal; alkaline phosphatase normal; lipase normal; glucose [212] mg/dL; creatinine [1.0].

Why these: fever, pain location and white count track the inflammation; a normal bilirubin and lipase make a stone in the common bile duct or pancreatitis less likely; glucose matters because infection raises it and surgery will require him to fast; creatinine matters because fluids, antibiotics and his metformin plan all depend on kidney function.

A normal bilirubin is selected for the workup not because it is abnormal, but because it rules out a complication that would change the surgical plan.

Medications and Reasons

Ceftriaxone and metronidazole IV: to treat possible infection of the gallbladder until surgery. IV fluids: he has eaten and drunk little. Hydromorphone IV as needed: pain control. Ondansetron as needed: nausea. Correction-scale insulin: metformin is held while he is fasting and before surgery. Amlodipine continued. Aspirin: the surgeon's note asks whether to hold it; this is a question for report.

Before Surgery

Nothing by mouth after midnight; consent obtained by the surgeon; type and screen drawn; glucose checks every [six] hours while fasting; teaching about the procedure, incisions and early walking afterward; confirm the aspirin plan.

What this part is doingThe preoperative checklist is built from his specific risks, including his diabetes and aspirin, rather than a generic list.

Priority Problems

1. Acute pain related to gallbladder inflammation, which also limits deep breathing.

2. Risk for infection progressing to sepsis, given fever and a high white count.

3. Risk for unstable blood glucose while fasting with infection.

4. Deficient knowledge about surgery and recovery (Harding et al., 2023).

Plan for the Shift

Pain reassessed after each dose, with deep breathing encouraged once pain is controlled; vital signs every four hours, reporting a rising temperature, heart rate or new jaundice; glucose checks and correction insulin; IV fluids and intake and output; preoperative teaching with his wife present in the afternoon.

What this part is doingThe closing section names what was left out, showing selection as a deliberate skill rather than an omission.

What I Left Out and Why

His cholesterol results, a normal chest X-ray from a year ago and a long list of past dental procedures were in the chart but do not change today's care, so they are not in the workup.

References

Gallaher, J. R., & Charles, A. (2022). Acute cholecystitis: A review. JAMA, 327(10), 965-975. https://doi.org/10.1001/jama.2022.2350

Harding, M. M., Kwong, J., Hagler, D., & Reinisch, C. (2023). Lewis's medical-surgical nursing: Assessment and management of clinical problems (12th ed.). Elsevier.

Potter, P. A., Perry, A. G., Stockert, P. A., & Hall, A. M. (2023). Fundamentals of nursing (11th ed.). Elsevier.

The Purdue Global NU142CL Unit 2 instructions

Unit 2 is usually the first complete written workup of an assigned patient, and it is the first place the course grades selection directly. Prompts commonly want a summary of the patient and condition, the data that matter with reasons, medications and indications, priority problems and a plan for the shift. Instructors look for workups that choose information because it shapes care, rather than reproducing the chart. Normal results belong when they rule something out. Preoperative patients need a plan for fasting, glucose, consent and medications that may be held. Stating what was left out, and why, shows that selection was deliberate rather than an oversight. Use a coded label throughout. Keep the workup short enough to carry onto the unit.

How this NU142CL Unit 2 example is built

The workup opens with a coded summary of the patient, his condition and the planned surgery, citing a review of acute cholecystitis. Selected data follow with a paragraph explaining why each was chosen, and the highlighted line explains including a normal bilirubin. Medications are listed with reasons, ending with a question about aspirin. A preoperative section lists fasting, consent, type and screen, glucose checks, teaching and the aspirin decision, with a margin note on tailoring it to his risks. Four ranked problems and a shift plan follow, and the final section names three chart items left out because they do not change today's care. Each data item is followed by its reason in a single line.

Where the points sit in the NU142CL Unit 2 rubric

Workups in NU 142CL earn most of their points through selection, accuracy, prioritization and planning. Selection is weighted heavily: every item should be there because it affects the shift, and a reason should be visible. Accuracy covers the condition, laboratory interpretation and medication indications. Prioritization rewards a ranked list with a defensible order. Planning earns credit when actions are timed and specific, including preoperative steps. Naming what was excluded demonstrates judgment. Graders also check that the coded label replaces identifiers, and that clinical claims are supported by sources in APA 7 where the workup explains a condition. A workup that could be read in two minutes at the start of the shift shows good selection. Instructors often ask students to defend one included and one excluded item.

NU142CL Unit 2 help from the desk

Workups often copy every lab and every past diagnosis from the chart, which buries what matters. Another frequent gap is listing medications without reasons, so a held drug or an odd order goes unnoticed. Some preoperative workups forget glucose management during fasting or an anticoagulant decision. Many never explain why a normal value was included. Pick data that change care, write a reason beside each, include normal results that rule out complications, give every medicine an indication, build the preoperative list from the patient's own risks, rank the problems and state what you left out. Ask yourself of every line: would the shift go differently without it?

Get an NU142CL Unit 2 example written to your instructions

The workup for your real patient is yours to complete from the assigned record. What comes back models the same form for a composite patient carrying a similar admitting problem, so attach the blank form and rubric, along with a short summary of the diagnosis and problems stripped of identifiers. The first custom sample is free and generally takes 24-48h. The paper above is an original model document written by our desk, not a submitted student paper and not an official Purdue University Global document.

More NU142CL papers and BSN samples

NU142CL Unit 2 questions, answered

Where can I find a free NU142CL Unit 2 sample paper?

You can read the complete NU142CL Unit 2 patient workup for acute cholecystitis here, with selected data and reasons, medications, preoperative steps, ranked problems, a shift plan and items left out, citing three sources. Share your assigned patient's details and we can draft the workup.

Why include a normal bilirubin in the NU142CL Unit 2 workup?

A normal bilirubin makes a stone in the common bile duct less likely, which would change the surgical plan. Normal results belong in a workup when they rule out a complication.

What causes acute cholecystitis?

Usually a gallstone blocking the cystic duct, which leads to inflammation and sometimes infection of the gallbladder. Early laparoscopic removal is the usual treatment.

Why is metformin held before surgery?

He is fasting and acutely ill, so metformin is held and correction insulin covers his glucose, with checks every six hours while he takes nothing by mouth.

Why state what was left out of a workup?

It shows the omissions were deliberate. The sample leaves out old cholesterol results, a past chest X-ray and dental history because none changes the day's care.