Home Nursing Techniques; Signs & Symptoms of Illnesses & Diseases

1.  If you are a good home nurse, what are the various home nursing techniques that you need to apply that   
     will make the patient feel comfortable and speed up the recovery?

• Making an unoccupied bed
• Making an occupied bed
• Taking the patient vital signs
• Bathing the patient           

2.  Why should the home nurse monitor the vital signs of the patient?
      To know when the patient health is getting better or worst.

3.  How do you take the body temperature, pulse rate, respiratory rate and blood pressure of the patient?
      Using a digital thermometer,gently place it under the patients arm feet. Place your two finger just below the wrist creases at the base of the thumb. Press lightly until you feel a pulse (blood pulsing under your fingers). If necessary, move fingers around until you feel the pulse. Using a stethoscope,place it in/on the patients chest or back. Tell the patient to inhale and exhale while you are checking his/her respiratory rate. To check the patient's blood pressure,wrap the BP cuff around the patient's arm and place the bell-shaped end of the stethoscope on the inside of the elbow where the pulse can be felt. Then squeeze the rubber caff to inflate it until pulsation can no longer be heard. Release air slowly.

4.  What are some practices that the home nurse must follow that will
      promote comfort to the patient?

• clean the patient's room
• change the bedsheets daily
• read the patient some story
• check his/her vital signs
• give him/her a bed bath/back rub
• give the right medicines             

5.  How will you differentiate signs from symptoms of illnesses and
     diseases?  Symptoms is the signs of the disease,while disease is an abnormal condition cause by a harmful bacteria. 

6.  If you are the doctor, what will be your basis in giving the diagnosis for your patient?

• COMPLAINT: What's wrong?
• SEX AND AGE: Male/Female - birthdate
• ONSET: When did it start?
• PALLIATIVE: What relieves your symptoms?
• PROVOCATIVE: What provokes your symptoms?
• QUALITY: How would you describe the symptoms? Sharp? stabbing?, sore? uncomfortable? nausea? achy? throbbing? ripping? tearing?
• RADIATING: Do the symptoms or pain radiate to another area of your body?
• SEVERITY: On a scale of 1 - 10, how would you rate your pain or discomfort?
• TIMING: How often do the symptoms occur?