A newly admitted patient is in acute pain, has not been sleeping well lately, and is having difficulty breathing. How should the nurse prioritize these problems?
a. Breathing, pain, and sleep
b. Breathing, sleep, and pain
c. Sleep, breathing, and pain
d. Sleep, pain, and breathing
A. Breathing, pain, and sleep
First-level priority problems are immediate priorities, remembering the ABCs (airway, breathing, and circulation), followed by second-level problems, and then third-level problems.