Chapter 3- Communication Skills

Question 1

active listening

Answer 1

a way of communication that involves giving a person one’s full attention while he is speaking and encouraging him to give information and clarify ideas

Question 2

adverse event

Answer 2

an unexpected event that causes serious injury or death; also called sentinel event

Question 3

barrier

Answer 3

a block or an obstacle

Question 4

body language

Answer 4

all of the conscious or unconscious messages a person’s body sends as she communicates; facial expressions, gestures, and posture are examples

Question 5

care conference

Answer 5

a meeting to share and gather information about a resident in order to develop a care plan

Question 6

care plan

Answer 6

a plan for each resident created by a RN that outlines the tasks that team members must perform to help the resident reach her goals of care

Question 7

charting

Answer 7

the act of noting care and observations; documenting

Question 8

code

Answer 8

in health care, an emergent medical situation in which specially trained responders provide the necessary care

Question 9

code status

Answer 9

formal documentation of the type and scope of care that should be provided to a particular resident in the event of a cardiac arrest, other catastrophic organ failure, or terminal illness

Question 10

critical thinking

Answer 10

the process of reasoning and analyzing in order to solve problems; for the nursing assistant, critical thinking means making careful observations and promptly reporting all potential problems

Question 11

culture

Answer 11

a set of learned beliefs, values, traditions, and behaviors shared by a social or ethnic group

Question 12

edema

Answer 12

swelling in body tissues caused by excess fluid

Question 13

incident

Answer 13

an accident, problem, or unexpected event during the course of care

Question 14

incident report

Answer 14

a report documenting an incident and the response to the incident; also called an occurrence, accident, accident/incident, or event report

Question 15

medical chart

Answer 15

legal record of all medical care a patient, resident, or client receives

Question 16

Minimum Data Set (MDS)

Answer 16

a detailed form with guidelines for assessing residents in long term care facilities; also details what to do if resident problems are identified

Question 17

nonverbal communication

Answer 17

communication without using words, such as through gestures and facial expressions

Question 18

nursing process

Answer 18

an organized method used by nurses to determine resident’s needs, plan the appropriate care to meet those needs, and evaluate how well the plan or care is working; the fives steps are assessment, diagnosis, planning, implementation, and evaluation

Question 19

objective information

Answer 19

factual information collected using the senses of sight, hearing, smell, and touch; also called signs

Question 20

orientation

Answer 20

a person’s awareness of person, place, and time

Question 21

prefix

Answer 21

a word part that comes before the root to help form a new term

Question 22

prioritize

Answer 22

to place things in order of importance

Question 23

root

Answer 23

the main part of a word that contains its basic meaning or definition

Question 24

rounds

Answer 24

scheduled visits to each resident’s room to assess the resident’s condition and needs and to discuss the care plan with participating staff

Question 25

sentinel event

Answer 25

an unexpected event that causes serious injury or death; also called adverse event

Question 26

subjective information

Answer 26

information collected from residents, their family members, and their friends; information may not be true, but is what the person reported; also called symptoms

Question 27

suffix

Answer 27

a word part added to the end of a root or a prefix to create a new word

Question 28

verbal communication

Answer 28

communication involving the use of spoken or written words or sounds; also called oral communication

Question 29

vital signs

Answer 29

measurements-temperature, pulse, respirations, and blood pressure- that monitor the functioning of the vital organs of the body