Patient Assessment

allvitals09

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So I just realized that my class only has three practical days left and me and patient assessment do not mesh well. Does anyone know of a place to practice or a way to practice.
 

HuiNeng

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Got family or a significant other?
 

vquintessence

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Well the best way is repetition. Grab at least two loved ones or good buddies and just practice head to toe. Also make a bunch of flash cards with two categories: trauma & medical. On each card have it mention a finding that will be announced only when you specifically discover it (visual inspection, odor, palpation, auscultation, etc).

Examples of flashcards:
Medical: Auscultation of lungs reveals bilat wheezing
Medical: Odor of fruit noticed from oropharynx
Medical: Vitals reveal tachycardia and hypotension
Trauma: Left leg has closed femur fx
Trauma: Crepitus at pelvis
Trauma: Distention noted LLQ of abdomen

The roles of everyone:
Person #1: the patient
Person #2: holds the flashcards and gives you their information AS YOU specifially come across each cards info during your assessment.


It will be more difficult making medical scenarios... because the flashcards will have to somewhat agree... and you will quickly recognize the pts condition... BUT that's the point!! You're building a familiarity with physically performing an assessment as well as learning to quickly recognize scenarios.

Take this suggestion for what it's worth (nothing!) and good luck.
 

medichopeful

Flight RN/Paramedic
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So I just realized that my class only has three practical days left and me and patient assessment do not mesh well. Does anyone know of a place to practice or a way to practice.

Hey Eric,

Is it the steps or sequence of the assessments that is messing you up? Or is it the various findings in the assessment that mess you up?

If it's the steps, my suggestion is to memorize the steps. Come up with little tricks to memorize the parts that mess you up or are complicated For example, I use the acronym "TABS" to help me remember a few of the steps of the trauma assessment (Transport decision, Assessment [focused or rapid], Baseline vitals, SAMPLE history). Try to come up with things like these. It may help you out. Also, run through an entire medical or trauma assessment in your head a few times a day. When you see somebody walking, or you are going somewhere, create a scenario for yourself and run through it in you head.

If it is the various findings in the assessments messing you up, make flashcards for the various ailments and injuries, and just study the hell out of the flashcards.

Here is a little trick I heard on this forum. If you are practicing a trauma assessment, have someone hide something on the patient, like a ping-pong ball or something. If you don't find the ping-pong ball (or whatever it is) when you do the assessment, you're not doing it correctly.

I hope this helps.

Eric
 
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allvitals09

allvitals09

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Thanks guys after I get home i will make my girlfriend help me. I think i will have someone use the cards as well. Any more tips are appreciated.
 

medichopeful

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Thanks guys after I get home i will make my girlfriend help me. I think i will have someone use the cards as well. Any more tips are appreciated.

If possible, have someone (it could be your patient) interrupt you from time-to-time. That way, you'll learn to be able to go through with interruptions. It's easy to go through without, once you get the steps down.
 

zmedic

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medichopeful; said:
If possible, have someone (it could be your patient) interrupt you from time-to-time. That way, you'll learn to be able to go through with interruptions. It's easy to go through without, once you get the steps down.

Not a bad idea, but walk before you run. You should be able to do the whole exam perfectly without distractions before you start throwing random things in.

Also make sure you verbalize. It ensures that you don't miss points on the test because they didn't see you do something and it helps you to stay organized.
 

medichopeful

Flight RN/Paramedic
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Not a bad idea, but walk before you run. You should be able to do the whole exam perfectly without distractions before you start throwing random things in.

Also make sure you verbalize. It ensures that you don't miss points on the test because they didn't see you do something and it helps you to stay organized.

Of course. This is AFTER you have them down perfectly just running through them.
 

medicdan

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Unfortinately, these methods work well for learning to assess for your practical exam, but help you in no way for patient assessment in the field-- You need to learn to listen to the answers to your questions, or physical exam, and how those findings change your assessment and treatment.
 

bunkie

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The biggest trouble I had in the beginning was narrating it while I was doing it then stopping to explain myself, as we were asked why we were doing each thing and all the millions of things we could/may see at that particular region. :wacko: So what I did was write it down. Then I wrote it over and over and over til I had it completely memorized. After that I would mock practice it over and over and over until it eventually just flowed out naturally. And I practiced a lot on a friend of mine in my class who as payment, practiced on me in return. During each of our study sessions we'd practice pt assessment as well. In our program if we didn't pass the pt assessment practical, we were out of the program. So we really made sure to practice until our arms, fingers and eyeballs wanted to fall of.
 

RDUNNE

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http://fliiby.com/file/33860/qfj34t2er1.html
Get together with someone in your class (or someone outside of it that knows about the medical field) and have them run you through these scenarios until you have it down. If your like me and have trouble memorizing something just by reading it, or you are particularly nervous about your practical, then it might help to devote it to muscle memory, thats how I'm making it through.
 
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allvitals09

allvitals09

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I like those scenarios and will have to run through them. Thanks
 
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