A patient diagnosed with hypoparathyroidism presents to the emergency department with symptoms of tingling around the mouth, muscle spasms, and a prolonged QT interval on the ECG. Which action should the nurse prioritize in the management of this patient?

Rationale: A. The patient is exhibiting acute hypocalcemia with neuromuscular irritability (tingling, muscle spasms, positive Chvostek/Trousseau signs) and cardiac manifestations (prolonged QT interval), which can lead to life-threatening arrhythmias. IV calcium gluconate provides rapid correction of serum calcium, making it the priority intervention in an emergency setting. B. Magnesium may be needed if hypomagnesemia is present because it can contribute to hypocalcemia, but the immediate life-threatening issue is low calcium, not magnesium deficiency. Administering magnesium alone does not correct the urgent hypocalcemia. C. Oral calcium is used for long-term management of hypocalcemia in hypoparathyroidism. In an acute, symptomatic emergency with cardiac involvement, oral calcium is too slow to correct the deficit and is not appropriate as the first-line intervention. D. Thyroid function is not the acute concern in this scenario. While hypoparathyroidism may be related to thyroid or parathyroid surgery, immediate management of symptomatic hypocalcemia is the priority over diagnostic testing.