At a cardiovascular clinic, two patients who are waiting to be seen begin a conversation about their history of having strokes. They talk about how they are being treated with the blood thinner...

At a cardiovascular clinic, two patients who are waiting to be seen begin a conversation about their history of having strokes. They talk about how they are being treated with the blood thinner warfarin. One of the patients is receiving a much lower dose of warfarin than the other patient. When this patient sees the nurse, he talks about his conversation with the other patient and asks the nurse why he is getting a lower dose: “Why don’t I have the same higher dose as the other patient? If I have the lower dose, doesn’t this increase my risk for having another stroke?” How would you answer this patient’s question?