Question of The Day

The nurse is caring for a group of clients when a fire alarm sounds in the hospital cafeteria. What should the nurse do next?

A. Find the fire extinguisher.

B. Close all doors in the area.

C. Remove oxygen devices.

D. Begin evacuating the clients.

Answer: B
In a fire emergency in a hospital setting, the nurse should follow the RACE protocol, which includes ensuring patient safety, raising the alarm, confining the fire, and preparing for evacuation. In this order, the nurse should first close all doors to confine the fire.

Explanation:
When a fire alarm sounds in a healthcare setting such as a hospital, the nurse’s priority is the safety of the clients or patients. According to general guidelines known as the RACE protocol (Rescue, Alarm, Confine, and Extinguish/Evacuate), the nurse should first ensure the safety of clients (rescue), next, raise the alarm if not already done, then try to confine the fire by closing all doors in the area and finally extinguish the fire (if it is safe to do so) or begin evacuation. Therefore, as per this protocol, the nurse should first close all doors in the area to confine the fire before moving to other responses.