A patient had a bowel resection 5 days ago.Which request by the patient might alert the nurse that the patient has a history of substance abuse?

A) Oral pain medication once every 6 to 8 hours
B) Patient-controlled analgesic
C) Oral pain medication instead of the IV form
D) Only nonpharmacological pain measures

The patient underwent surgery 5 days ago; if there are no complications,it is unlikely that he would require frequent dosing of analgesic,as is possible with PCA.The nurse should recognize this behavior as a possible indicator of current substance abuse or addiction.Requesting oral pain medications every 6 to 8 hours is a typical behavior for a patient 5 days after surgery.Requesting an oral form of the drug does not indicate substance abuse.