Clinical Skills

Kerry Reid-Searl, Trudy Dwyer, Jackie Ryan, Lorna Moxham, Ann Richards

• Contents Richards COMMON LABORATORY BLOOD TESTS 24-HOUR CLOCK MEDICATION ADMINISTRATION Five rights and three checksTips in preventing medication errorsSafety tips with oral medicationsSafety tips with injectionsAbbreviations used in medication administrationMetric system and symbolsDrug calculationsSome common drug classesDrug name endings and related informationDrugs utilised as antidotes OXYGENFLUID BALANCE Measurements useful for fluid balance charts Tips with fluid balance charts Types of IV fluids VITAL SIGNS QUICK HEAD-TO-TOE ASSESSMENT PAIN ASSESSMENT MENTAL HEALTH ASSESSMENT PERSONAL PROTECTIVE EQUIPMENT (PPE)Bodily fluids exposureRESUSCITATION Cardiac rhythms When to seek help Common emergency drugs: dose and action WOUND CARE DOCUMENTATION General points Tips with verbal handovers Nursing process GENERAL ABBREVIATIONS USEFUL WEBSITES TIME MANAGEMENT GRIDOTHER THINGS TO REMEMBER

"A neat, tidy and very handy book for nursing students and newly qualified staff to have whilst out in the clinical environment. ... What is great about this little pocket guide is that it uses the terminology regularly used in the clinical environment but provides examples of where it may be used ... This helps to link theory to practice and aid easy identification of drug classes and what they are." - Tianna Jarrett-Williams, Nursing Student