Nurse Assisting Skills
This mandatory task must be performed before and after every single patient interaction.
What is handwashing?
If you see "-itis" at the end of a medical word, like tonsillitis or arthritis, it means this has happened to the body part.
What is inflammation?
This vital sign, measuring the force of blood against artery walls, is considered normal at a reading of 120 over 80.
What is blood pressure?
This stage of human development, spanning from birth to about one year of age, is characterized by the most rapid rate of physical growth.
What is infancy?
Crossing your arms, rolling your eyes, and smiling are all forms of this two-word type of communication.
What is nonverbal communication?
To ensure proper leverage, prevent falls, and protect your own back, you should place this supportive device around a resident’s waist before helping them ambulate.
What is a gait belt?
Derived from the Greek word for "heart," this is the medical term for an abnormally fast heart rate, typically over 100 beats per minute.
What is tachycardia?
Counted by watching the rise and fall of a patient's chest, this vital sign is typically 12 to 20 breaths per minute for an adult.
What is the respiratory rate?
The development of small muscles, which allows a child to perform tasks like holding a pencil or using scissors, is known by this two-word term.
What are fine motor skills?
This intentional listening technique involves nodding, maintaining eye contact, and paraphrasing what the speaker just said to show understanding.
What is active listening?
A patient’s complaint of a headache is considered this type of subjective health data, whereas a recorded blood pressure reading is considered objective data.
What is a symptom?
Taken literally from its medical roots, a patient diagnosed with "subcutaneous" bruising has bleeding located here.
What is under the skin?
Taken at pulse points like the radial or carotid artery, this vital sign is medically referred to by this two-word term when measuring the heart's beats per minute.
What is heart rate?
At the very bottom of Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs are these basic, life-sustaining requirements, which include food, water, and sleep.
What are physiological needs?
This word describes any audio disturbance that interrupts, distorts, or blocks the transmission of a message from sender to receiver.
What is noise?
When assisting a resident who has right-sided weakness following a stroke, a nursing assistant must always dress this side of the body first.
What is the right (weak) side?
From the Greek words for "bile" and "sac," a cholecystectomy is the surgical removal of this specific organ.
What is the gallbladder?
Derived from the Greek words for "lack of breath," this medical term describes the subjective feeling of shortness of breath or labored breathing.
What is dyspnea?
Arising around 6 to 8 months of age, this normal developmental milestone involves an infant showing distress or crying when an unfamiliar person approaches them.
What is stranger anxiety?
Adopted by healthcare systems from the U.S. military, this four-letter acronym represents a structured communication tool used by nurses and doctors to share critical patient information via Situation, Background, Assessment, and Recommendation.
What is SBAR?
This is the medical term for the permanent shortening and hardening of a muscle or joint, often prevented by a CNA performing Range of Motion (ROM) exercises.
What is a contracture?
Lithotripsy is a non-invasive medical procedure used to break up these painful abdominal masses using shockwaves.
What are kidney/gall stones?
Often considered the "fifth vital sign," this non-invasive metric uses a pulse oximeter to measure the percentage of hemoglobin bound to oxygen.
What is oxygen saturation?
Derived from Greek words meaning "head" and "tail," this biological principle describes the tendency for human physical growth and motor control to develop from the head downward.
What is the cephalocaudal trend?
This specific type of question (which cannot be answered with a simple "yes" or "no") is heavily used by clinicians during patient interviews to encourage patients to share detailed histories and describe symptoms in their own words.
What is an open-ended question?