An elderly man is admitted to the ED during the night shift. He reports slipping and hitting his forehead on the bathtub several hours earlier. The nurse is assessing the client’s frontal lobe function. Which of the following questions/statements should the nurse ask the client?

  • “Tell me when you feel me touch your arm.”
  • “Tell me when you stop hearing the tuning fork sound.”
  • “Do you have problems with balance?”
  • “How much is two plus four plus seven?”
Number 4 is correct.
Asking the client to add a simple series of numbers tests problem solving, a function of the frontal lobe. Tactile sensation is a parietal lobe function. Hearing function is a temporal lobe function. Balance is a function of the cerebrum.