The nurse is performing a neurologic assessment of a 41-year-old patient the patient is able to open eyes to pain, uses inappropriate words, and has flexion withdrawal from pain. What is their GCS score?

The Glasgow Coma Scale (GCS) measures three aspects: Eye response, verbal response, and motor response. Eye response: Opens eyes to pain (score 2). Verbal response: Uses inappropriate words (score 3). Motor response: Flexion withdrawal from pain (score 4). Total GCS = 2 (eyes) + 3 (verbal) + 4 (motor) = 9.