A client diagnosed with major depression is admitted for electroconvulsive therapy. The client asks how many treatments are typically required. What is the nurse's best answer?

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Multiple Choice

A client diagnosed with major depression is admitted for electroconvulsive therapy. The client asks how many treatments are typically required. What is the nurse's best answer?

Explanation:
Electroconvulsive therapy is given in a course of multiple treatments rather than as a single session. Because people respond differently, the exact number varies, but a common range is 6 to 12 treatments. These are typically spread over about 2 to 4 weeks, usually 2–3 sessions per week, depending on how the patient responds and what side effects occur. So, saying that there is variability but that, on average, 6–12 treatments are needed best reflects real practice: it acknowledges individual differences while giving a useful typical range. The other ideas—treatments to be discussed individually with the provider, monthly treatments for a year, or taking one treatment at a time—don’t capture the standard plan for the overall course.

Electroconvulsive therapy is given in a course of multiple treatments rather than as a single session. Because people respond differently, the exact number varies, but a common range is 6 to 12 treatments. These are typically spread over about 2 to 4 weeks, usually 2–3 sessions per week, depending on how the patient responds and what side effects occur.

So, saying that there is variability but that, on average, 6–12 treatments are needed best reflects real practice: it acknowledges individual differences while giving a useful typical range. The other ideas—treatments to be discussed individually with the provider, monthly treatments for a year, or taking one treatment at a time—don’t capture the standard plan for the overall course.

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