A nurse is caring for a client who is receiving continuous feedings via NG tube. Which of the following actions should the nurse take?

A. Irrigate the client's tube with 10 ml of cool water every hr: Flushing an NG tube is appropriate to maintain patency, but 10 mL is often insufficient for continuous feedings, and routine irrigation “every hr” is not standard practice. Flushing should follow facility protocol and be based on feeding type, residuals, or signs of tube blockage. B. Elevate the head of the client's bed to a 15 angle: Elevating the head of the bed only 15 degrees is insufficient to reduce the risk of aspiration during continuous enteral feeding. Evidence-based practice recommends elevating the head of the bed to 30–45 degrees to promote gastric emptying and prevent reflux or aspiration. C. Replace the client's feeding bag every 72 hr: Feeding bags for continuous enteral feedings should be replaced more frequently, typically every 24 hours, to reduce bacterial contamination and the risk of infection. Waiting 72 hours increases the likelihood of microbial growth and potential sepsis. D. Check the client's gastric residual every 4 hr: Monitoring gastric residuals every 4 hours is an important action to assess tolerance to continuous tube feeding. High residuals can indicate delayed gastric emptying or intolerance, guiding decisions to hold or adjust the feeding, preventing aspiration and other complications.