A patient being admitted in hypertensive crisis informs the nurse that he stopped taking his blood pressure medication 3 weeks ago.Which response by the nurse is best?

A) "You're lucky you didn't have a stroke; you really need to take your medication."
B) "Tell me more about your experience with your high blood pressure medication."
C) "Why did you stop taking your high blood pressure medication?"
D) "It's very important to take your blood pressure medication."

The nurse can gather more information about the patient's reasons for stopping his blood pressure medication by asking him to tell her more about his experience with the medication.Telling the patient he is lucky he did not have a stroke suggests criticism.Asking the patient why he stopped taking his high blood pressure medication may cause the patient to become defensive and halt further communication.Telling the patient that it is very important to take his blood pressure medication is patronizing and also suggests criticism; at the very least,it fails to elicit more communication from the patient.