What should staff do if a resident experiences an adverse reaction?

Monitoring and documenting an adverse reaction is crucial for several reasons. First, it ensures that the healthcare team is aware of the resident's condition and can track changes over time. This documentation is vital for assessing the severity and frequency of adverse reactions, which can inform future medication regimens and care plans.

Additionally, monitoring allows staff to provide immediate support to the resident while collecting important data that might be relevant for healthcare professionals, such as physicians or pharmacists, who may need to evaluate the situation further. This step can also help in identifying patterns or trends that may require intervention, whether that means adjusting dosages or exploring alternative treatments.

In contrast, providing first aid only limits the scope of intervention to immediate physical response without considering the broader implications of the reaction, while ignoring the reaction entirely puts the resident at significant risk. Administering additional medication without a proper evaluation could exacerbate the situation, highlighting the critical importance of careful monitoring and documentation as the initial steps in addressing any adverse reaction.