Assessment practice...ever find something wrong on your pretend patient?

[dudette10, MSN, RN]

Today in assessment lab, we were going over cranial nerve assessment. When we got to acoustic/vestibulocochlear/cn VIII, we used tuning forks. I found out I have hearing loss in my right ear!

Ever do an assessment practice and discover something on yourself or your partner?

[LETRN]

In my first semester assessment class we were practicing palpating the liver, and my partner had a flippin HUGE liver. It was so large that I thought for sure that it couldn't be...so our instructor (a FNP) came over and confirmed it. She was so concerned that she had the girl leave class and schedule an appointment with her PCP.

I never did find out what was wrong (if anything)...she failed the semester and no one ever heard from her again.

[BanoraWhite]

I am alway Tachy, I have been through heaps of tests and no Doctor can seem to find the cause.

Its always funny when we do pulses in lab and everyone elses pulse is around 70-80 whilst mine is about 110.

[CT Pixie, BSN, RN]

I'm another tachy girl..no tests or exams have ever figured out why..my PCP tells me..well you seem to have the metabolism of a rabbit..why not the heart rate too.

While practicing taking apical pulses, I noticed a faint murmur on my partner, she didn't know she had it and our instructor ,a NP, heard it too..very faint but it was there. Oh and while doing lung assessments she noticed i had some wheezing in my lungs (she told me this and i thought to myself..yea ok..i feel FINE)..two days later I was dx w/PNA

[CuriousMe]

Yeah, on me.....but it wasn't a surprise. My asthma was acting up while we were learning respiratory assessment.....so everyone got to hear bilateral wheezing at bases. I also have ambylopia....so during our vision assessments, they got to see me fail vision tests in my left eye. ( I can see the letters. but don't know what they are when I look with my left eye).

[CT Pixie, BSN, RN]

wanted to add that although my lab instructor was sympathetic to my ailment and didn't want me sick, she sure did take advantage of it..my lungs were assessed x 35 students so they could all hear abnormal lung sounds..and then they were able to continue doing it for a few days as my abx wiped out my PNA and i began to slowly have normal ones.

Breathing in and out x6 times 35 students left me vey much SOB and near hyperventalation LOL

[Coriander, BSN, RN]

I haven't personally, but my instructor has told us that they've found breast cancer, cervical cancer, mono (due to enlarged spleen) and some other things during her assessment classes. She says it's because since we're learning, we're more likely to spend more time in each area.

[CT Pixie, BSN, RN]

Curious to know how they found cervical cancer...we didn't do GYN exams on anyone.

[dudette10, MSN, RN]

wanted to add that although my lab instructor was sympathetic to my ailment and didn't want me sick, she sure did take advantage of it..my lungs were assessed x 35 students so they could all hear abnormal lung sounds..and then they were able to continue doing it for a few days as my abx wiped out my PNA and i began to slowly have normal ones.

Breathing in and out x6 times 35 students left me vey much SOB and near hyperventalation LOL

:lol2:

It's pretty weird that we get so excited when we find something wrong with people! One of my instructors said, "The sicker the better!"

[sailornurse]

I taught assessment for 5 years and almost every semester, a student would find an abnormality in another student.

Enlarged thryoids, breast cancer, pulmonary hypertension last year was the biggie. The "patient" had 3 + pitting edema, weight gain, so went to see her primary and was referred stat to a cardiologist!!! She is still on meds for this and being followed every 3-4 months.

Hearing loss and periperal vision (blind spots), irregular heart rhythyms, are a few things that have been found.

A thyroid nodule that ended up being biopsied the same week was another one.

Since most students are healthy young adults, they have not had thorough or recent physical exams. The fact that first semester nursing students have found these abnormalities speaks to how well they have learned the material.