Basic Health and Medications

Basi c Heal t h and Medi cat i ons The Ri ght D oor f or H ope, Recover y, and W el l ness Compiled by Jessica McDowell, RN BSN What we will be covering the first half of this course…... ➔Vital Signs ➔Infection Control/Universal Precautions ➔M edi cal Emer genci es ➔Sei zur es Vital Signs Accurate measurement of vital signs is an i mpor t ant r esponsi bi l i t y of a heal t h car e worker. Vi t al si gns i ncl ude: Temper at ur e, Pul se, Bl ood Pr essur e and Respi r at or y Rat e. Temperat ure ➢ M easur es t he amount of heat i nsi de a per son’s body. ➢ I ncr eases wi t h exer ci se. ➢ W hen heal t h st at us changes, t emper at ur e may al so change. ➢ M et hods of t emper at ur e r egul at i on i ncl ude: ○ Perspiration ○ Shivering Ensure you are cleaning your thermometers with alcohol between uses! Ways t o obt ai n a t emperat ure Axi l l ar y ( under ar m) T empor al ( f or ehead) -N or mal r ange 95 t o 98 degr ees F. -N or mal r ange i s 96 t o 99 degr ees F -gl ass/di gi t al t her momet er . -N ewest met hod, r eads t emp of t empor al -minimum 10 minutes. ar t er y. -W at ch f or cover ed head or H eavy per spi r at i on. Orally -Most common. Tympani c ( ear ) -N or mal r ange i s 96 t o 99 degr ees F. -N or mal r ange i s 96 t o 99 degr ees F. -Digital only, disposable tip for each use. -M er cur y t her momet er s ar e not of t en used, -Pull ear up for adults, pull ear down for kids. t hey ar e t oxi c i f br oken. Rect al -Shake down bef or e use, 3 mi n. M i ni mum. -N or mal r ange i s 97 t o 99 degr ees F. -No food or drink for 15 min. before taking -N ot of t en used. or al t emper at ur e! -Minimum of 3 minutes, lubricate thermometer, only insert 1 ½ inches. Troubl eshoot i ng Temperat ure Di screpanci es ➢ Know your thermometer! Procedures vary by brand! ➢ Check/change bat t er i es. ➢ M ake sur e gl ass t her momet er i s shaken down. ➢ Double check unusual readings. ➢ Ver i f y wi t h anot her t her momet er . Pul se ➢ I ndi r ect measur e of hear t r at e. ➢ Normal range is 60 to 100 bpm. ➢ Do not use your thumb (you will feel your own pulse). ➢ Take pul se f or 30 seconds and doubl e. ➢ I f pul se i s i r r egul ar , t ak e f or a f ul l 60 seconds. Measuri ng Pul se rat e met hods Radi al Ar t er y Car ot i d Ar t er y You can al so use a st et hoscope t o l i st en f or t he hear t r at e ( auscul t at i on) ! Respirations ➢ Respirations are usually collected in conjunction wi t h obt ai ni ng t he pul se r at e. ➢ W or ks best i f t he per son you ar e col l ect i ng respirations on, doesn't know (they will change t hei r r at e i f you t el l t hem you ar e count i ng r espi r at i ons) . ➢ To count , 1 r i se and f al l of t he chest = 1 r espi r at i on. ➢ Count for one full minute. ➢ N or mal adul t r at e i s 12 t o 28 br eat hs per mi nut e. ➢ Ei t her wat ch chest r i se and f al l f or count , or pl ace hand on chest or stomach to count. Bl ood Pressure M easur es t he f or ce of bl ood i nsi de of t he ar t er y. Syst ol i c: Top number- Pr essur e while heart is pumping (or cont r act i ng) . N or mal adul t r ange i s 90 to 140 mmHg. Diastolic:Bottom number- Pr essur e while heart is filling with blood ( r el axi ng) . N or mal adul t r ange i s 60 to 90 mmHg. Bl ood Pressure Success Tips ➢ Ensur e cuf f si ze i s appr opr i at e ( l i nes on cuf f t o measur e) . ➢ Pr oper cuf f pl acement i s vi t al ! U se br achi al ar t er y as mar ker . Agai n cuf f wi l l have an indicator. ➢ Fi r st t hump= syst ol i c pr essur e. ➢ Last thump= diastolic pressure. ➢ Record (ex: 120/60). ➢ I f unusual r eadi ng: Tr y ot her ar m, check bat t er i es, cont act super vi sor , cal l doct or ’s office, call 9-1-1 if dangerously high! Practice Obtaining Vital Signs Pl ease copy and past e i nt o your br owser for a demonstration on obtaining a full set of vi t al si gns. https://youtu.be/F16AHU9SPm8 You wi l l need t o demonst r at e a bl ood pr essur e and pul se wi t h a nur se t o r ecei ve your cer t i f i cat e of compl et i on. Sei zures “ A br i ef di st ur bance i n t he el ect r i cal act i vi t y of t he br ai n t hat causes t empor ar y changes i n movement , awar eness, f eel i ngs, or behavi or ” ( Epi l epsy foundation, 2006). During a seizure….. A person is unable to control activity. Per son may exper i ence an aur a bef or e sei zur e occur s. Sei zur e may l east f r om seconds t o mi nut es. M ake sur e t o t i me sei zur e. NEVER put anything in a person's mouth during seizure activity! Types of Sei zures -Tonic-Clonic: AKA convulsive/grand mal. -Absence: AKA pet i t mal . -Si mpl e Par t i al : AKA Jacksoni an/Sensor y. -Compl ex Par t i al -Atonic: AKA Drop Attacks. -Myoclonic: Most common in children. -I nf ant i l e Spasms Providing First Aid & Document ing a Seizure First Aid for a Seizure D ocument i ng a Sei zure ➢ KEEP CALM ! ➢ D ur at i on of Sei zur e ➢ Loosen anything around person’s neck. ➢ Event s pr ecedi ng sei zur e ➢ D o not r est r ai n t hem. ➢ Behavi or dur i ng sei zur e ➢ Do not put anything in their mouth. ➢ Cl ear t he ar ea ar ound t hem. ➢ St ay wi t h t hem unt i l sei zur e has st opped. ➢ Goal i s t o keep t hem saf e dur i ng t he sei zur e. When i s a Sei zure an Emergency? W hen shoul d you cal l 9-1-1? ➢ N o hi st or y of sei zur es. ➢ Pr egnant or a di abet i c. ➢ Sei zur e occur r ed i n wat er . ➢ Longer than 5 minutes. ➢ Seizures occur rapidly without returning t o nor mal st at e. ➢ Br eat hi ng does not r esume af t er sei zur e has ended. ➢ Injury occurs. Anaphylactic Shock ➢ ALW AYS a medi cal emer gency! ➢ Occurs within minutes of exposur e t o al l er gens. ➢ Fr equent l y Fat al ! ➢ I t i s a syst emi c al l er gi c r eact i on. Anaphylact ic Causes and Prevent ion Possi bl e Causes Pr event i on ➢ Medications (Commonly ➢ KNOW YOUR CONSUMER’S antibiotics). ALLERGIES! ➢ D yes f or di agnost i c t est s. ➢ Monitor closely when giving new ➢ Bee/wasp st i ngs. medi cat i on. ➢ Foods ( N ut s, eggs, seaf ood) . ➢ Al l er gi c r eact i ons can happen t o ➢ Blood products. anyone, but some peopl e ar e mor e pr one ( e.g. H ay f ever , ast hma, f ood al l er gi es) . Anaphylact ic Signs/ Sympt oms & Treat ment Signs and symptoms include: Treatment: ➢ Itching ➢ CALL 9-1-1! ➢ Hives ➢ Commonly used medications ➢ GI cramping/vomiting include: Epinephrine (epipen), ➢ Swelling in face or throat. diphenhydramine (benadryl), ➢ Thready pulse. hydrocortisone, hydroxyzine ➢ Extreme drop in blood pressure. (Atarax), and aminophylline. ➢ Difficulty breathing. Inf ect i on Cont rol W A SH YO U R H A N D S! Transmi ssi on of Disease T r ansmi ssi on of di sease can happen by indirect or direct exposur e.

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