Problem
Ms. Altman, a 68-year-old woman, comes to see her nurse practitioner complaining that she is far more tired than usual and feels weak a lot lately. Laboratory tests turn up the following.
a) Hemoglobin: 13.4 g/dL
b) Hematocrit: 41%
c) White blood cell (WBC) count: 6.25 x 109/L
d) Platelets: 300 x 109/L
e) Red blood cell (RBC) count: 4.1 x 1012/L
f) Blood urea nitrogen (BUN): 20.4 mg/dL
g) Serum creatinine: 1.2 mg/dL
h) Serum albumin: 4.1 g/dL
Discuss how you would address the patient's concerns.