A client comes to the emergency department because of severe upper abdominal pain. The client reports that it came on suddenly a few hours ago, and nothing thus far has relieved it. The nurse observes...

A client comes to the emergency department because of severe upper abdominal pain. The client reports that it came on suddenly a few hours ago, and nothing thus far has relieved it. The nurse observes that the client is curled in a fetal position and is rocking back and forth. Which action would best assist the nurse in further assessing the client’s pain?

1. Ask the client to rate the pain on a scale from 0 to 10

2. Determine if the client can stop moving about

3. Give the client a prescribed pain-relieving drug

4. Observe if the client is breathing heavily.