Patcare Midterms

• Care for patient's belongings

  • Patients typically wear a patient gown for examination or treatment
  • The radiographer determines which clothing items to remove
  • A courteous and professional approach can reduce discomfort or embarrassment
• Care for outpatient clothing removal procedure

  1. Patient should be taken to the dressing area and shown how to close the dressing room door or draw the cubicle curtain

  2. Ensure patient understands that some examining gowns open at the back
• Care for patient's clothing removal procedure

  1. Show patient what to do if they cannot leave the clothing

  2. Handle purses, jewelry, and valuables with care to prevent loss or theft
• Care for patient's personal items

  • Dressing rooms are not safe place
  • Consider patient's concern and explain necessary details
  • Keep patient's personal items safe
• Care for patient's personal items

  1. Metal items such as necklaces, rings, and watches should be removed before a diagnostic procedure begins

  2. Identifying information should be written in a receipt

  3. Do not place value on patient's belongings
• Body mechanics


  • Ways of how we move as we go about our daily lives
  • Special techniques to coordinate your balance and movement which helps to avoid injuring yourself and your patient
• Gravity


  • The force that pulls objects toward the center of the earth
  • Any movement requires an expenditure of energy to overcome the force of gravity
• Benefits of good posture

  • Good posture aids other body systems to work efficiently
  • Prevents fatigue and deformities
  • Reduces strain on the musculoskeletal system: bones, joints, tendons, ligaments, muscles
  • Enhances the efficiency of other body systems like respiration
  • Helps to use appropriate technique when moving patient
  • Contributes to a more attractive and confident appearance
• Rules for correct upright posture

  1. Hold chest up and slightly forward with the waist extended

  2. Hold head erect with the chin held in

  3. Stand with the feet parallel and at right angles to the lower legs. The feet should be 4 to 8 inches apart

  4. Keep the knees slightly bent; they act as shock absorbers for the body

  5. Keep the buttocks in and the abdomen up and in
• Rules for picking up heavy objects

  1. When picking up an object from the floor, bend the knees and lower the body. Do not bend from the waist

  2. The biceps are the strongest arm muscles and are effective when pulling; therefore, pull heavy items or patients rather than push them

  3. When assisting a patient to move, balance the weight over both feet. Stand close to the patient, flex the gluteal muscles, and bend the knees to support the load. Use arm and leg muscles to assist in the move

  4. Always protect the spine. Rather than twisting the body to move a load, change the foot position instead. Always keep the body balanced over the feet, which should be spread to provide a firm base of support

  5. Make certain the floor area is clear of all objects
• Patient transfer


  Moving a patient from one flat surface to another, the most common being from a bed to a stretcher and from a bed to a wheelchair
• Patient care transfers are an essential yet often neglected aspect of patient care, requiring rigorous adherence to clinical guidelines
• Preparation for transfer

  1. Check with nursing service and obtain the chart

  2. Plan what you are going to do, and prepare your work area

  3. Check patient identification

  4. Obtain equipment, and check it for safety and function

  5. Enlist the patient's help and cooperation. Remember to tell the patient what you are doing as you proceed

  6. Obtain additional help when necessary. Check to make certain your assistants understand their role in the transfer plan
• Wheelchair transfers

  1. Position wheelchair parallel to patient's bed with wheels locked and footrests out of the way

  2. Lower bed and side rails

  3. Lift patient to a sitting position; while lifting allowing patient's to legs to clear edge of bed

  4. Allow the patient to rest briefly before standing

  5. Using face-to-face assistance, help raise weak patient to standing position

  6. Provide support as the patient eases into the wheelchair

  7. Cover patient's lap and legs; adjust leg rests and footrests
• Gait belt


  • Heavy fabric strap with strong buckle, used when assisting patients who are weak or unsteady
• Transferring paralyzed patients

  1. Two-person lift: The stronger of the two is the primary lifter, and the second person assists. The primary lifter stands behind the chair and reaches around the patient, extending their arms through the patient's axillae and grasping the patient's forearms from the top. The assistant kneels on one knee near the patient's feet and cradles the patient's thighs in one arm and the lower legs in the other

  2. Three-person lift: Remove both arms of the wheelchair and position the first two lifters as for the two-person lift. The third lifter kneels on one knee at the side of the chair farthest from the table, placing one arm around the patient's waist and the other under the buttocks
• Stretcher transfer

  1. Draw sheet transfers: A single sheet folded in half that is placed under the patient and over the middle third of the bed. When moving the patient, the edges of the draw sheet are loosened from the bed and rolled up close to the patient's body

  2. Slider board and sliding mat transfers: A strong sheet of smooth plastic large enough to support the patient's body with handholds cut into the edges

  3. Safety side rails: Stretchers are equipped with to ensure that patients will not fall or attempt to climb off without assistance
• 3-4 people are the minimally required people for a transfer board transfer
• Immobilizers


  Devices used to keep patients from moving during imaging procedures
• Immobilization


  • Refers to the use of various devices to keep patients from moving during imaging procedures
  • Several methods may be used to aid in the immobilization of adults who have difficulty remaining still
  • It is preferable to win the confidence of small children and to have them submit willingly to examination, occasionally you must immobilize children for their safety or to meet technical procedure requirements
• Why is immobilization necessary?

  • Safety
  • Medical Treatment
  • Transportation
  • Security
  • Stabilization
• Positioning


  • The act of preparing the patient to undertake a medical imaging examination, to expertly delineate the required anatomy and pathology
  • Can enhance the effectiveness of treatments by allowing for better visualization of surgical sites
  • Proper positioning of the patient can also aid in preventing complications
  • Positioning the patient properly is crucial for their comfort, and safety
• Positions in medical imaging

  • Supine
  • Prone
  • Lateral Recumbent
  • Sims'
  • Fowler's
  • Semi-Fowler's
  • Trendelenburg
  • Knee-chest
  • Lithotomy
• Supine


  Defines the position in which the patient is lying on his or her back
• Prone


  Defines the position in which the patient is lying on his or her front
• Lateral Recumbent


  Denotes that the patient is lying on one side
• Sims'


  Lying on the left side, left hip and lower extremity straight, and right hip and knee bent
• Fowler's


  A supine position in which the patient's upper body is elevated about 60-90°
• Semi-Fowler's


  The upper body is only partially elevated about 30-45°
• Trendelenburg


  The patient's head is lower than the feet. Usually the table is tilted approximately 15 degrees
• Knee-Chest


  Prone position that brings the knees to the chest
• Lithotomy


  Lying on your back with your legs flexed 90 degrees at your hips
• Tips in dressing and undressing a patient

  1. Always preserve the person modesty by not undressing him unnecessarily

  2. Close the door and draw the curtains when undressing the person

  3. Keep the room warm because you may take some time to complete the task

  4. Encourage the person to do as much as possible himself to boost his independence and morale

  5. Talk to the person to alley anxieties and embarrassment during the process

  6. Do not rush through the procedure

  7. Be gentle in your movements and pull the clothes not the person
• Patient preparation before dressing and undressing

  1. Wash your hands

  2. Gather necessary clothing

  3. Explain what you are going to do

  4. Provide privacy

  5. Provide assistive devices as per service plan
• Procedure after dressing and undressing the patient

  1. Assess Comfort Level

  2. Disposed soiled items and PPE appropriately

  3. Clear and store items used neatly

  4. Perform hand hygiene
• Undressing and dressing the patient with disabilities in lower extremities

  1. Place a long examining gown on the patient

  2. Have the patient sit down

  3. Place a draw sheet over the patient and then help her to remove her slip and brassiere

  4. Help her to put on an examining gown and then remove the draw sheet
• Undressing and dressing a patient with a paralyzed leg

  1. Slide the clothing (pants or skirt) over the feet or legs as far as the hips while the patient is sitting and still wearing an examining gown

  2. Have the patient stand and pull the clothing over the hips if he or she can tolerate it

  3. If the patient is not able to pull the clothing over the hips alone, have an assistant raise the patient off the chair so that you may slip the clothing over the hips and waist

  4. Remove the patient's arms from the sleeves of the gown. Have the patient hold the gown over his or her chest, and carefully pull the shirt over the head, or put it on one sleeve at a time

  5. When the outside items of clothing are on the patient, remove the gown from under the clothes
• Undressing and dressing a disabled or dependent patient

  1. Cover the patient with a draw sheet and have an examining gown ready

  2. Remove the clothing from the less affected side first and then remove the clothing from the more affected side and place the clean gown

  3. Next place the clean gown on the unaffected side and tie the gown at the back

  4. If the patient is wearing an article of clothing that must be pulled over the head, roll the garment up above the waist

  5. Neatly, gently lift the clothing over the patient's head

  6. To remove trousers, loosen buckles and buttons and have the patient raise his buttocks as the trousers are slipped over his hips

  7. Slip the trousers below the knees and off

  8. Fold the clothing and place it in a paper bag on which the patient's name has been printed
• Undressing and dressing the patient with an intravenous infusion

  1. If the patient's gown must be changed, slip the clothing off the unaffected side first

  2. Carefully slide the sleeve of the affected side over the IV tubing and catheter, then over the container of fluid. For this step, the container must be removed from the stand

  3. When replacing the soiled gown with a clean one, first place the sleeve on the affected side over the container of fluid, then over the tubing and onto the arm with the venous catheter in place. Rehang the bottle of fluid and complete the change

  4. When moving the arm of a patient who has an IV catheter in place, support the arm firmly so that the catheter does not become dislodged. Remember to keep the bottle of fluid above the infusion site to prevent blood from flowing into the tubing
• Putting a shirt on a patient who is able to sit

  1. Lower the side rail on the side of the bed

  2. Support the client's affected side if they can sit

  3. Lift and support their arm to thread it through the sleeve area

  4. Continue to support the affected side while sliding the garment to the unaffected side, and thread the unaffected arm through the sleeve area

  5. Garments that have an opening for the head will require you to slide the head into the neck opening

  6. Support the affected arm, and have the affected arm placed in the sleeve area before the unaffected arm and the garment are pulled down