Safety Ch. 8 Flashcards
What order are requisite skills performed in?
Inspection
Palpation
Percussion
Auscultation
Explain Inspection
Looking at the patient, requires good lighting, exposure, instruments
always comes first
Explain Palpation
Using hands and touch to assess
texture, temp., moisture
organ location/size
Swelling, vibration, pulsation, crepitation
Rigidity, spasticity
lumps, masses
tenderness/pain
How should Palpation be performed?
Slow and systematic, increasing pressure as needed, both hands sometimes
What are fingertips best suited for during palpation?
Find tactile discrimination of texture, swelling, pulsation, lumps
What are fingers and thumbs best suited for during palpation?
Detecting the position, shape, consistency of an organ or mass
What are the dorsa of hands and fingers best suited for during palpation?
Temperature due to thin skin
What are the base of fingers and ulnar surface of the hand best suited for during palpation?
Vibration
Explain Percussion
Tapping/ short strokes to assess underlying structures
helps determine the density of an underlying structure
What are the 2 percussion techniques used?
Pleximeter: stationary hand, hyperextend the middle finger and press firmly against skin (only distal joint and tip of middle finger should touch the skin)
Plexor: Striking hand, using other middle finger (the Plexor), strikes the knuckle of the pleximeter
What are the characteristics of sounds?
Amplitude: intensity
Pitch: frequency, # of vibrations/sec
Quality: timbre, subjective
Duration: length of time a sound lingers
What kind of sounds do structures with more air produce?
Deeper, louder
Explain Auscultation
Listening
Stethoscope
What are the basic principles of Auscultation?
Eliminate extra noise
Warm environment/stethoscope
Avoid listening over hairy areas
Never listen through clothes/gown
Avoid your own artifact
What standard equipment does measurement of vital signs require?
Platform scale w/ height attachment
Stethoscope, Sphygmomanometer, thermometer, pulse oximetry
