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Assignment questions
NursingCase studyPediatric nursing

Pediatric hematologic and metabolic case study guide

Select one of three paediatric case studies — a jaundiced one-week-old, a three-year-old picky eater with microcytic hypochromic anaemia, or a short thirteen-year-old at Tanner stage II — and post a differential diagnosis, the most likely diagnosis, a treatment and management plan with dosages, and family education strategies.

Editorial process

Last reviewed · August 14, 2026

01

Three cases, and what each one is testing

Read all three cases before choosing, because each tests a different reasoning skill and the one that looks easiest may not be. Case one is a one-week-old back to birth weight, feeding well, wetting eight to ten nappies a day, with matched maternal and infant blood types, a negative Coombs test and slight scleral and skin jaundice. Almost everything there is reassuring, so the task is to distinguish physiological jaundice from the pathological causes the negative Coombs and matched types have already made unlikely, and to state what would change your mind. Case two is a three-year-old living on waffles, macaroni and chicken nuggets, with a haemoglobin of 11.4, a haematocrit of 30 and microcytic hypochromic red cells. That picture points towards iron deficiency, but the differential has to include the other causes of a microcytic anaemia, and cow's milk intake is the question the history has not asked.

Case three is the hardest: a thirteen-year-old, thin and short, with breast development at Tanner stage II and pubic hair at Tanner stage I, and an otherwise normal examination. The work there is deciding between constitutional delay of growth and puberty, familial short stature, an endocrine cause and a chronic condition presenting as growth failure — and the data that would settle it, growth velocity, parental heights and bone age, is exactly what the case withholds. Whichever you choose, the post is graded on the differential rather than on the answer, so give at least three plausible conditions and say what each would predict. Then make the plan specific: dosing by weight rather than by adult convention, a follow-up interval, and the red flags that would bring the child back sooner. Aim the education at the family, since a parent carries out every plan here.

Likely learning objectives

Inferred from the brief — check these against your own rubric.

  • 01
    Build a differential diagnosis from paediatric history and examination findings.
  • 02
    Identify the features that make one diagnosis more likely than its alternatives.
  • 03
    Recognise the red flags that move a common presentation into urgent territory.
  • 04
    Construct a management plan with appropriate paediatric dosing.
  • 05
    Design family education for a chronic or dietary condition.
Assignment instructionsQuoted verbatim

Read the full question

Review every instruction before using the planning guidance that follows.

Assignment Diagnosis And Management Of Hematologic And Metabolic Disorders Diagnosis And Management Of Hematologic And Metabolic Disorders In clinical settings, pediatric patients often present with hematologic and metabolic disorders such as anemia and diabetes. Many of these disorders are manageable with drug therapy and lifestyle changes, but they can pose serious complications for patients if left untreated. In your role as the advanced practice nurse, you must identify patients at risk of hematologic and metabolic disorders and provide the appropriate education for them and their families. Consider potential treatment, management, and education strategies for the patients in the following case studies. Case Study 1 You see a 1-week-old Asian infant for a weight check. The infant is back to his birth weight and is breastfeeding for 10 minutes every 2 hours with one 3-hour stretch a day. He is alert, has bowel movements with each feeding, and wets 8–10 diapers a day. His blood type is A+ and his mother’s blood type is A+. Coombs’ testing at birth was negative. You note slight scleral and skin jaundice. Case Study 2 Jimmy is a 3-year-old “picky” eater according to his mother. He refuses to eat anything but waffles for breakfast and macaroni and cheese or chicken nuggets for lunch and dinner. He will eat apples and bananas but refuses all vegetables except corn. After a normal physical examination, you obtained blood testing that revealed the hemoglobin is 11.4 mg/dl and his hematocrit is 30% (both obtained by venipuncture). The CBC revealed microcytic hypochromic RBCs. Case Study 3 Melissa is a 13-year-old who presents to your office for a well-child check. Physical examination reveals a thin child who is short of stature. Breast Tanner stage is II and pubic hair development is Tanner I. Neurologic, skin, heart, lung, abdominal, and HEENT examinations are normal. To prepare: Review “Endocrine and Metabolic Disorders” and “Hematologic Disorders” in the Burns et al. text. Review and select one of the three provided case studies. Analyze the patient information. Consider a differential diagnosis for the patient in the case study you selected. Think about the most likely diagnosis for the patient. Think about a treatment and management plan for the patient. Be sure to consider appropriate dosages for any recommended pharmacologic and/or non-pharmacologic treatments. Assignment Diagnosis And Management Of Hematologic And Metabolic Disorders Consider strategies for educating patients and families on the treatment and management of the hematologic or metabolic disorder. By Day 3 Post an explanation of the differential diagnosis for the patient in the case study you selected. Explain which is the most likely diagnosis for the patient and why. Include an explanation of unique characteristics of the disorder you identified as the primary diagnosis. Then, explain a treatment and management plan for the patient, including appropriate dosages for any recommended treatments. Finally, explain strategies for educating patients and families on the treatment and management of the hematologic or metabolic disorder.
Course-wide instructions that accompany this question

Important information for writing discussion questions and participation Hi Class, Please read through the following information on writing a Discussion question response and participation posts. Contact me if you have any questions. Important information on Writing a Discussion Question Your response needs to be a minimum of 150 words (not including your list of references) There needs to be at least TWO references with ONE being a peer reviewed professional journal article. Include in-text citations in your response Do not include quotes—instead summarize and paraphrase the information Follow APA-7th edition Points will be deducted if the above is not followed Participation –replies to your classmates or instructor A minimum of 6 responses per week, on at least 3 days of the week. Each response needs at least ONE reference with citations—best if it is a peer reviewed journal article Each response needs to be at least 75 words in length (does not include your list of references) Responses need to be substantive by bringing information to the discussion or further enhance the discussion. Responses of “I agree” or “great post” does not count for the word count. Follow APA 7th edition Points will be deducted if the above is not followed Remember to use and follow APA-7th edition for all weekly assignments, discussion questions, and participation points. Here are some helpful links Student paper example Citing Sources The Writing Center is a great resource Welcome to class Hello class and welcome to the class and I will be your instructor for this course. This is a -week course and requires a lot of time commitment, organization, and a high level of dedication. Please use the class syllabus to guide you through all the assignments required for the course. I have also attached the classroom policies to this announcement to know your expectations for this course. Please review this document carefully and ask me any questions if you do. You could email me at any time or send me a message via the “message” icon in halo if you need to contact me. I check my email regularly, so you should get a response within 24 hours. If you have not heard from me within 24 hours and need to contact me urgently, please send a follow up text to. I strongly encourage that you do not wait until the very last minute to complete your assignments. Your assignments in weeks 4 and 5 require early planning as you would need to present a teaching plan and interview a community health provider. I advise you look at the requirements for these assignments at the beginning of the course and plan accordingly. I have posted the YouTube link that explains all the class assignments in detail. It is required that you watch this 32-minute video as the assignments from week 3 through 5 require that you follow the instructions to the letter to succeed. Failure to complete these assignments according to instructions might lead to a zero. After watching the video, please schedule a one-on-one with me to discuss your topic for your project by the second week of class. Use this link to schedule a 15-minute session. Please, call me at the time of your appointment on my number. Please note that I will NOT call you. Please, be advised I do NOT accept any assignments by email. If you are having technical issues with uploading an assignment, contact the technical department and inform me of the issue. If you have any issues that would prevent you from getting your assignments to me by the deadline, please inform me to request a possible extension. Note that working fulltime or overtime is no excuse for late assignments. There is a 5%-point deduction for every day your assignment is late. This only applies to approved extensions. Late assignments will not be accepted. If you think you would be needing accommodations due to any reasons, please contact the appropriate department to request accommodations. Plagiarism is highly prohibited. Please ensure you are citing your sources correctly using APA 7th edition. All assignments including discussion posts should be formatted in APA with the appropriate spacing, font, margin, and indents. Any papers not well formatted would be returned back to you, hence, I advise you review APA formatting style. I have attached a sample paper in APA format and will also post sample discussion responses in subsequent announcements. Your initial discussion post should be a minimum of 200 words and response posts should be a minimum of 150 words. Be advised that I grade based on quality and not necessarily the number of words you post. A minimum of TWO references should be used for your initial post. For your response post, you do not need references as personal experiences would count as response posts. If you however cite anything from the literature for your response post, it is required that you cite your reference. You should include a minimum of THREE references for papers in this course. Please note that references should be no more than 5 years old except recommended as a resource for the class. Furthermore, for each discussion board question, you need ONE initial substantive response and TWO substantive responses to either your classmates or your instructor for a total of THREE responses. There are TWO discussion questions each week, hence, you need a total minimum of SIX discussion posts for each week. I usually post a discussion question each week. You could also respond to these as it would count towards your required SIX discussion posts for the week. I understand this is a lot of information to cover in 5 weeks, however, the Bible says in Philippians 4:13 that we can do all things through Christ that strengthens us. Even in times like this, we are encouraged by God’s word that we have that ability in us to succeed with His strength. I pray that each and every one of you receives strength for this course and life generally as we navigate through this pandemic that is shaking our world today. Relax and enjoy the course!

02

Turn the brief into deliverables

  1. 01
    One selected case study, named.
  2. 02
    A differential diagnosis with at least three plausible conditions.
  3. 03
    The most likely diagnosis and the reasoning behind it.
  4. 04
    Unique characteristics of the primary diagnosis.
  5. 05
    A treatment and management plan with dosages where applicable.
  6. 06
    Education strategies for the patient and family.
03

Differential, diagnosis, plan, education

01

The case and its key data

Restate the findings that will drive the reasoning.

02

The differential

Set out at least three plausible conditions and what each would predict.

03

The most likely diagnosis

Name it and give the features that make it most likely.

04

Treatment and management

Give pharmacologic and non-pharmacologic management with dosing.

05

Educating the family

Set out what the family needs to know, do and watch for.

04

Current paediatric references for each case

Recommended databases

  • StatPearls via NCBI Bookshelf
  • MedlinePlus
  • PubMed
  • The Burns et al. paediatric primary care text
  • Cochrane Library

Search sequence

  1. 1.
    Choose the case and list every abnormal finding before reading anything.
  2. 2.
    Look up the age-specific normal ranges the case is being measured against.
  3. 3.
    Read a current reference on the condition you suspect and on two alternatives.
  4. 4.
    Check paediatric dosing from a current source rather than from memory.
  5. 5.
    Find the red flags that would change the plan, and state them.
05

Reference shortlist

These are authoritative starting points, not a ready-made bibliography. A qualified reviewer must confirm that each source fits the assignment and supports the claim beside which it is cited.

Nothing here is cleared for citation until you have read it.

  1. 01

    Neonatal Jaundice

    StatPearls, NCBI Bookshelf · 2023

    Case one: distinguishing physiological from pathological jaundice and when to act.

  2. 02

    Iron Deficiency and Microcytic Hypochromic Anemia

    StatPearls, NCBI Bookshelf · 2024

    Case two: the microcytic hypochromic picture, its causes and its management.

  3. 03

    Short Stature

    StatPearls, NCBI Bookshelf · 2023

    Case three: evaluating short stature and delayed puberty in an adolescent.

  4. 04

    Anemia

    MedlinePlus, National Library of Medicine · 2024

    Plain-language material to draw on when writing the family education section.

06

Review before submission

Common mistakes

  • Giving one diagnosis and no differential, which skips the graded reasoning.
  • Ignoring the age of the child, which changes what is normal for every case.
  • Omitting dosing when the prompt asks for appropriate dosages.
  • Missing the red flag that separates a benign from an urgent version of the presentation.
  • Treating dietary advice as sufficient education without addressing adherence.
  • Answering more than one case study when the prompt asks for one.

Submission checklist

  • One case is selected and identified at the start.
  • At least three differentials are given with reasoning.
  • The primary diagnosis is justified from the case data.
  • Dosages are included and age-appropriate.
  • Red flags and follow-up are addressed.
  • Family education is specific to this diagnosis.

Use this guide to plan and review your own work. Follow your institution's rules and read our academic-integrity policy.

Written by

Aaron Bishop

MA, Education

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Aaron leads the EssayCrackers editorial desk. He works on how assignment briefs are read — what a rubric is actually asking for, and where students most often answer a different question than the one set.

Reviewed by

Dr. Nathan Cole

PhD, Rhetoric & Composition

Argumentation and thesis development

Nathan teaches first-year composition and directs a university writing center. He reviews EssayCrackers guides for argumentative soundness and citation accuracy.

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