Standard Steps in Nursing Procedures. Self learning session 6.
This article is written by a Lecturer in Health Sciences for application in the Hospital and in the home. Safe nursing care is becoming more and more important as diseases like MRSA, SARS Bird Flu become endemic. Cost of preventing an infection outweights the cost of treating it and managing it.
These notes are for Nursing Students of Charles Darwin University. It is assumed that the reader has a baseline knowledge and that the patient has already be admitted to one of the units in a hospital.
At the Beginning of the procedure.
Step 1. Check the orders in the patient’s chart. Read the nursing and medical histories. Go to your patient after washing your hands and intorduce yourself if the patient does not know you.
Step 2. Check that you have come to the correct patient. This is done by varifying with the patient his/her identity and checking the patient’s identity. Explain the procedure to the client. Obtain informed consent.
Step 3. Close curtains to insure privacy and raise the bed to the appropriate height. Obtain and arrange your supplies and equipment.
During the procedure.
Step 4. Wash your hands again. Put on gloves following standard precautions. Put on eye protectin and gown, if needed.
Step 5. Mentallly review the steps for the procedure. This is also the time to discuss procedure with instructor or CNM, if needed. Insure that you are following protocol of facility in which you are working.
Step 6. Execute the procedure in accordance with standard practices. If you need to deviate from standard practice you should notify the physician, His/her authority and your competence must match. Do not exceed your authority and/or scope of practice.
Gowning and Glowing: Follow institutions procedure: See picture below – fairly standard technique. Use other equipment as needed.
Picture 1. Nurse is Appropriately gowned, gloved and wearing a make to carry out a procedure.
After the procedure.
Step A: Dispose of sharps in the sharps container. Remove gloves and wash hands.
Step B: Move the patient to a comfortable position. Tell the patient how the procedure went or of any values / results. Listen to what the patient has to say. Restore the bed height and wash hands again.
Step C: Record and document the procedure. Report significant variations or results to your superior or physician.
Note that the hands are washed three times during each porcedure. Before seeing the patinet, before starting the procedure and after finishing the procedure. This is becoming increasingly important because MRSA, SARS and bird flu infections have had “community destroying” consequences.
Last but not least, these notes require you to have a nursing background to be able to fully understand the rationalizations for using the different positions. If you are unsure about any details please contact your lecturer or the institution. Do not risk harm to yourself, the patient, society or the institutions.
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