Nursing assesment

Hari sujadi S.Kep Ns M.Nurs

Definition
Part of Nursing Process

Nurses use physical assessment skills to:

• Obtain baseline data and expand the data base from
which subsequent phases of the nursing process can
evolve
• To identify and manage a variety of patient problems
(actual and potential)
• Evaluate the effectiveness of nursing care
• Enhance the nurse-patient relationship
• Make clinical judgments
Gathering Data
Subjective
data - Said
by the
client (S)

Objective
data -
Observed
by the
nurse (O)
Assessment Techniques
Inspection – critical observation
*always first*
• Take time to “observe” with eyes, ears, nose
(all senses)
• Use good lighting
• Look at color, shape, symmetry, position
• Observe for odors from skin, breath, wound
• Develop and use nursing instincts
• Inspection is done alone and in combination
with other assessment techniques
Assessment Techniques
Palpation – light and deep
touch
• Back of hand (dorsal aspect) to assess skin
temperature
• Fingers to assess texture, moisture, areas
of tenderness
• Assess size, shape, and consistency of
lesions and organs
• Deep = 5-8 cm (2-3”) deep; Light = 1 cm
deep
Assessment Techniques
Percussion – sounds produced
by striking body surface
• Produces different notes depending on
underlying mass (dull, resonant, flat,
tympanic)
• Used to determine size and shape of
underlying structures by establishing their
borders and indicates if tissue is air-filled,
fluid-filled, or solid
• Action is performed in the wrist.
Assessment Techniques

Auscultation – listening to
sounds produced by the body
• Direct auscultation – sounds are audible without stethoscope
• Indirect auscultation – uses stethoscope
• Know how to use stethoscope properly [practice skill]
• Fine-tune your ears to pick up subtle changes [practice skill]
• Describe sound characteristics (frequency, pitch intensity, duration,
quality) [practice skill]
• Flat diaphragm picks up high-pitched respiratory sounds best.
• Bell picks up low pitched sounds such as heart murmurs.
• Practice using BOTH diaphragms
Examination of the Chest and Lungs

Equipment Needed
• Stethoscope
• Peak Flow Meter
General Considerations
• The patient must be properly undressed and gowned for this
examination.
• Ideally the patient should be sitting on the end of an exam table.
• The examination room must be quiet to perform adequate
percussion and auscultation.
• Observe the patient for general signs of respiratory disease (finger
clubbing, cyanosis, air hunger, etc.).
• Try to visualize the underlying anatomy as you examine the patient
 Examination of the Chest and Lungs

Inspection
• Observe the rate, rhythm, depth, and effort of breathing. Note
whether the expiratory phase is prolonged.
• Listen for obvious abnormal sounds with breathing such as
wheezes.
• Observe for retractions and use of accessory muscles
(sternomastoids, abdominals).
• Observe the chest for asymmetry, deformity, or increased
anterior-posterior (AP) diameter.
• Confirm that the trachea is near the midline
• A-P (anterior-posterior) diameter vs. transverse diameter
• A-P should be less than Transverse in adults; 1:2 – 5:7
• Elevated A-P size = barrel chest, may be COPD in adult; normal
in children
Examination of the Chest and Lungs

Palpation
• Identify any areas of tenderness or deformity
by palpating the ribs and sternum.
• Assess expansion and symmetry of the chest
by placing your hands on the patient's back,
thumbs together at the midline, and ask
them to breathe deeply.
• Check for tactile fremitus. (process page 16)
Examination of the Chest and Lungs

Percussion

Proper Technique
• Hyperextend the middle finger of one hand and place the distal interphalangeal joint
firmly against the patient's chest.
• With the end (not the pad) of the opposite middle finger, use a quick flick of the
wrist to strike first finger.
• Categorize what you hear as normal, dull, or hyperresonant.
• Practice your technique until you can consistently produce a "normal" percussion
note on your (presumably normal) partner before you work with patients.

Diaphragmatic Excursion
• Find the level of the diaphragmatic dullness on both sides.
• Ask the patient to inspire deeply.
• The level of dullness (diaphragmatic excursion) should go down 3-5 m
symmetrically
 Examination of the Chest and Lungs
Anterior Chest
• Percuss from side to side and top to bottom using the pattern shown in the
illustration.
• Compare one side to the other looking for asymmetry.
• Note the location and quality of the percussion sounds you hear.
Posterior Chest
• Percuss from side to side and top to bottom using the pattern shown in the
illustration. Omit the areas covered by the scapulae.
• Compare one side to the other looking for asymmetry.
• Note the location and quality of the percussion sounds you hear.
• Find the level of the diaphragmatic dullness on both sides

Posterior Chest Anterior Chest

Examination of the Chest and Lungs

INTERPRETATION
Flat or Dull Pleural effusion or lobar Peumonia
Normal Healthy lung or bronchitis
Hyperresonant Emphysema or Pneumothorax
 Examination of the Chest and Lungs
Auscultation
• Use the diaphragm of the stethoscope to auscultate breath sounds.

Posterior Chest
• Auscultate from side to side and top to bottom using the pattern
shown in the illustration. Omit the areas covered by the scapulae.
• Compare one side to the other looking for asymmetry.
• Note the location and quality of the sounds you hear.
Anterior Chest
• Auscultate from side to side and top to bottom using the pattern
shown in the illustration.
• Compare one side to the other looking for asymmetry.
• Note the location and quality of the sounds you hear
 Examination of the Chest and Lungs
Interpretation
• Breath sounds are produced by turbulent air flow. They are categorized
by the size of the airways that transmit them to the chest wall (and your
stethoscope). The general rule is, the larger the airway, the louder and
higher pitched the sound.
• Vesicular breath sounds are low pitched and normally heard over most
lung fields.
• Tracheal breath sounds are heard over the trachea.
• Bronchovesicular and bronchial sounds are heard in between.
Inspiration is normally longer than expiration (I > E).
• Breath sounds are decreased when normal lung is displaced by air
(emphysema or pneumothorax) or fluid (pleural effusion).
• Breath sounds shift from vesicular to bronchial when there is fluid
in the lung itself (pneumonia).
• Extra sounds that originate in the lungs and airways are referred to as
"adventitious" and are always abnormal (but not always significant).
Examination of the Chest and Lungs
Adventitious (Extra) Breath Sounds
Crackles These are high pitched, discontinuous sounds similar to the sound
produced by rubbing your hair between your fingers. (Also known
as Rales)
Wheezes These are generally high pitched and "musical" in quality. Stridor is
an inspiratory wheeze associated with upper airway obstruction
(croup)
Rhonchi These often have a "snoring" or "gurgling" quality. Any extra sound
that is not a crackle or a wheeze is probably a rhonchi. Low pitched
GROUP TASK (send email/ WA)
• Original video of:
▫ Cardiovascular Examination and Peripheral
Vascular System
▫ Examination of the Abdomen
▫ Musculoskeletal System
▫ Neurologic Examination
• Max 5 mins duration

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