Clinical meaning
Prioritization, ABCs & safety items test whether you connect assessment data to risk: what changes first, what needs escalation, and what teaching or orders are unsafe in context.
US RN (NCLEX-RN): Prioritize airway–breathing–circulation and unstable vs stable framing. Watch delegation traps: what must stay with the RN when the client is deteriorating vs what is appropriate for the UAP/LPN when stable and within competency.
Prioritization logic: Actual problems before potential; acute before chronic; unstable before stable. When several clients compete, pick whoever deteriorates fastest without the ordered nursing action.
What do you do first (RN)? Use ABCs, then immediate safety and harm reduction. Among similar options, choose what addresses the greatest risk now or closes the critical data gap before less urgent tasks.
Exam traps (RN): Do not delay an unstable client for routines. Delegation stays with the RN for assessment and teaching when risk is high. Wrong answers often skip assessment, delay escalation, or delegate what must stay RN-level.