Do RN's ever do physical examinations?

[northmississippi]

I bought a book called Bates Physical Examainations that seems to go well as a suppliment to my anatomy book, it's very interesting.

Do nurses ever get to do examinations where the information from a book like that would come in handy?

[klone, MSN, RN]

Most RNs who do direct patient care do physical exams every time they work.

[pednursedeb]

I think all nurses LVN and RN do physical exams on all their patients. How else would you care for them and know what's wrong?

[worked hard and long]

Dear Nmiss what do you think nurses do on their initial rounds the first thing in their shift? We may not do retinal checks and percuss chests and abdomens but we auscultate and palpate when the need arises. Just the first few questions asked when you see a pt tells you about their mental status is a physical examination. If you suspect a problem you ask more questions. If needed perform a full glascow assessment. We don't have time to palpate lymph nodes. With time and experience we perform our exams to fit the pt and their dx. I was doing a daily routine check of a pt and realized that when the pt talked to me she was looking past me. Her medical hx mentioned nothing of neurological or ocular problems. I figured she either had macular degeneration or a stroke of some type. I then performed pupil check EOMS (extraocular muscle movements) and a peripheral field vision check. This reported to the doctor and a ct scan later determined she had a stroke in her occipital area the night before. Night shift charted an episode of confusion but nothing major. YES Everything we do is a physical examination right down to the amount and color of a pts pee - is it a diluted color or concentrated meaning the pt is dehydrated and does not have proper fluid volume status then you go back to the I & O numbers and meds such as diuretics for a better picture.

[loriangel14, RN]

Another tern for physical examination is physical assessment and RNs do it every day.

[AgentBeast, MSN, RN]

The entire "nursing process" breaks down if you don't/can not do a proper head to toe assessment. How else are you going to come up with a nursing diagnosis and interventions if you can't even find what is wrong with the patient?

[worked hard and long]

Dear scotte i agree a head to toe assessment is best and usually done on initial interview or admit and in the ICU, CCU etc every 4 hour due to conditions quickly changing. This is yes of course how nursing diagnosis are formulated. However out on the floor nurses are dealing with more pts and head to toe exams are a luxury. Sometimes the exams are driven by the type of charting forms the floor/facility has nurses fill out. Other times additional exams/asessments are based on skill and knowledge.

[shhhh]

I've caught something important during an assessment that the doctor's didn't almost every shift I work. Not because I work with inept doctors, but because I'm at the bedside constantly and they usually check in only periodically. RN's definitely do physical examinations, and those skills are even more valuable in the ICU, considering how quickly an already pretty sick patient can crump even more.

[froggg123]

I use Bates in my MSN class, however, we are taught basically the same head to toe assessment that I was taught in my AAS class, so yes all RNs do assessments. Some do head to toe and sometimes you only have time for a focused assessment but you need to know all head to toe before you can focus, YES Bates is an excellent resource to aide any RN in assessments of their patients.

[Whispera, MSN, RN]

I see that you're a pre-nursing student. When you get into your nursing courses, you'll either have an assessment course or the skills will be blended into other courses. Yes, we do assessments all the time! You'll most likely have a physical assessment textbook too.

[RKpianoman, APRN]

Bates is what I used in the "Health Assessment" course my first semester of my BSN program; it's a very good, detailed guide.

[middleager]

I am wondering if the OP did not mean physical exams in what non medical people think of when one says physical exam ie sports physicals, pre employment, DOT, annuals, etc.