health assessment

Question 1

what are some characteristics of health assessment?

Answer 1

collecting, analyzing, and validating information

Question 2

what is a comprehensive assessment?

Answer 2

one that involves a health history and physical assessment

Question 3

what is a partial/ongoing assessment?

Answer 3

an assessment that is conducted at each shift

Question 4

what is a focused assessment?

Answer 4

when we assess a specific body part.
rationale: there is usually 1-2 body systems involved

Question 5

what are the characteristics of an emergency assessment?

Answer 5

usually this is life threatening.

Question 6

what are some things included in a shift assessment?

Answer 6

safety, vitals, mental status, etc

Question 7

what are some things we should do with the patient during the assessment?

Answer 7

explain the procedure, explain that the procedure should not be painful

Question 8

true/false: privacy should be maintained during assessments

Answer 8

true
rationale: privacy should be a main priority for us as nurses

Question 9

what are some lifespan considerations?

Answer 9

considering normal deviations when it comes to mental and psychological responses

Question 10

what are some things we should be sensitive to when we conduct assessments?

Answer 10

cultural differences, past experiences, etc

Question 11

who is going to be the most accurate source of information during a health assessment ?

Answer 11

the patient

Question 12

how does a RN’s assessment differ from a provider’s?

Answer 12

the RN uses a holistic approach to see how the health status affects the person as a whole, rather than focusing on a specific disease process

Question 13

when we are conducting a physical assessment, what are some things we should be assessing for?

Answer 13

mobility, age, status, mental health

Question 14

when preparing for a diagnostic test, what is the RN’s role?

Answer 14

the registered nurse will prepare the patient, physically and mentally, explaining the procedure and providing education

Question 15

what are we doing when we inspect the body

Answer 15

we are using our eyes to see, but we also are using our sense of smell and hearing

Question 16

what does it mean to palpate a person?

Answer 16

we are going to use our palms and fingers to assess tugor, moisture, and thickness of skin and body parts

Question 17

understand that percussion is using fingers to tap and ascultate and feel differences in sound, but that this is not usually a skill that we are going to do

Question 18

true/false: the diaphragm of the stethescope is used for high pitched sounds

Answer 18

false
rationale: the bell is used for high pitched sounds, the diaphragm is used for lower pitched sounds

Question 19

why is it important as RN’s to do health history?

Answer 19

if we can get a propper history, we can detect problems before they become issues

Question 20

what are some risk factors assiciated with skin?

Answer 20

past history of lesions, cuts, etc

Question 21

what are some things we do not want to see when we are assessing the skin?

Answer 21

erethyma, cyanosis, palor, jaundice
rationale: we want nice, consistent skin color throughout the body