English for Nursing 2

Topic 9

ORAL HYGIENE

Instructional objective
The students are expected to be able:

 to act out a conversation and practice of helping patient do oral care, and
 to write a nursing documentation after helping patient do oral care.

Reading
Direction. Read the nursing note below and get some useful information about providing oral hygiene
for patients. Then, answer the following questions.

NURSING NOTE
Wherever possible, patients should be encouraged and supported to carry out their
own oral care. However, when they are unable to do this ( for example or example
due to stroke, arthritis, arm injury, head injury, and surgery) maintaining patients’
oral hygiene is an essential nursing duty and is considered a fundamental aspect of
care (Department of Health, 2010). Cleaning patients’ oral cavity is a skill that
requires practice. 
Providing effective mouthcare to patients has a range of benefits. For example,
it can:
 Promote self-esteem and comfort;
 Improve appetite and enjoyment of food and drink, as poor oral hygiene can
affect taste;
 Improve social acceptability and social interaction by preventing halitosis.
These benefits will all help patients to recover from illness.
After doing the intervention, nurse should write a nursing documentation. Why
should an oral assessment be carried out?
 To provide a baseline, initial information about the condition of your patient’s
oral cavity.
 To monitor progress of oral care/treatments.
 To identify any new problems (Dougherty and Lister, 2008).

(Source: nursingtimes.net)

Questions:
1. What should nurse do to patients before providing them oral hygiene?
2. What should nurse do when patients are unable to do their own oral care?
3. What are the benefits of providing effective mouthcare to patients?
4. Why should an oral assessment be carried out?

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Related Vocabularies
Direction. The followings are the vocabularies related to giving bathing patient. Practice the
pronunciation. Complete the blanks with the proper pronunciation.
A. Needed Equipment

Cup Disposable Gloves Receiver

/............/ /.................................../ /.................../

Towels Toothbrush Toothpaste

/ˈtou(ə)ls/ /ˈto͞oTHˌbrəSH/ /ˈto͞oTHˌpāst/

Dental Floss Mouthwash Lip Balm

/.............................../ /............................./ /......................../

B. Verbs
1. Prepare /...................../ : mempersiapkan
2. Wash /......................../ : membasuh
3. Cover /....................../ : menutup
4. Place /....................../ : meletakkan
5. Remove /..................../ : mengangkat, melepaskan
6. Apply /..................../ : mengoles

C. Adjective
1. Comfortable /............../ : nyaman

Useful Expressions
Direction. Study the following useful expressions when helping patient do oral care. Then, practice
them.

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 A. Greeting
 Hi. How are you?
 Good morning, Maam.

B. Self-Introduction
 My name is Marrie. I’m gonna be your aid today.
 Can you tell me your name?
 Can you state your birth date?

C. Explaining what you are going to do

 I am here to ....  I am here to help your oral care. Is
that okay?
 I am going to ....  I am going to get your bed head
up in 90 degree ankle.
 I would like to ....  I would like to wash brush your
teeth.
 I need to ....  I need to take a piece of dental
floss.
 I just want to ....  I just want to offer a sip of water.
 Let me ...  Let me apply lip balm on your lips
to keep them moist.

D. Giving questions
 Do you ...............?  Do you need my assistance for
brushing your teeth?
 Do you have any problems with
your gum or tooth?

E. Giving instructions
 Please (V1) ............  Please show me your teeth.
 Spin the mouth rinse in this
receiver.
 Will/Would/Could/Can  Would you like me to apply this
you ...............? lip balm?

Integrated Listening and Speaking Exercise

Direction. Accomplish the following conversation then act out the dialogue.

Nurse : It is time to (1)...................................................

Do you need my assistance to brush your teeth?
Patient : Yes, thank you. Would you get my toothbrush for me?
Nurse : Sure. Where do you keep your toothbrush?

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Patient : It is inside that drawer.
Nurse : Here you are.
Patient : Thank you.
Nurse : You’re welcome.
Here’s some water. (2)...................................................
Patient : Thanks.
Nurse : No problem.

Communication Exercise
Direction. Choose a pair and write a complete conversation on the acts of helping patient do oral care.
You can use the useful expressions above. Then, practice and present your communication practice.

Nurse: "Good morning sir?.."

Patient: "Morning"

Nurse: " Introducing my name is Galih Armando, I am a student of the Faculty of Nursing majoring in
nursing, I want to know your personal data"

Patient: "yes, please"

Nurse: "What is your full name?

Patient: "Ubaidillah"

Nurse: "How old are you, sir?"

Patient : “19 years old”

Nurse: “Can you tell me your date of birth?”

Patient : “2001/19/marert”

Nurse : “Can you tell me about the chief complaint?”

Patient: "Well, nurse, I don't feel confident talking to my friends because of bad breath and usually
when I brush my teeth my gums bleed."

Nurse: "May I know how many times a day do you brush your teeth?"

Patient: "two, morning and evening"

Nurse : "Have you ever had a dental hygiene check at the nearest dental health center?"

Patient: "Never"

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Nurse : "Oh, so what you are experiencing seems to be a buildup of tartar on the surface of your
teeth, resulting in bad breath and bleeding gums. so I advise you to do tartar cleaning.”

Patient: "Oh yes, you can."

Nurse: "do you agree if now we take action to clean your tartar

Patient: yes I agree.

Nurse : “Okay, I started to clean the tartar. If you feel pain you can raise your hand and I start from
the lower jaw"

patient : " ok nurse "

Nurse: "For the front teeth, it hurts a little and bleeds a little. ”

Nurse : "Please rinse your mouth - gargle"

Patient: "Already a nurse"

Nurse : “Sir, you have finished cleaning your tartar. After this I will accompany you to brush your
teeth. And also later I will give antiseptic to speed up the healing of the gums. ”

Patient: "ok nurse"

Nurse : “The action is done, how does it feel, is there something different?

Patient : "Well nurse, it feels lighter and my mouth feels clean"

Nurse: "And don't forget to check your teeth every 6 months, okay?"

Patient : ok sis, thank you

Nursing Documentation
Direction. Write a nursing documentation after providing oral care for patient.

What to document?
1. Patient’s Identity (at least name and age)
2. Nurse’s name
3. Date and time
4. Significant observations and assessment findings

Example
Patient Identity
Name : Mr. Ubaidilah Age : 19 y.o.

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Results and Findings
Bleeding in the gums
Tartar buildup
Painful
Time : 10.00 a.m.

Day, date: Saturday, November 9, 2021

Nurse : Galih Ar