Archive for April, 2010

What are Clinicals?

Tuesday, April 27th, 2010

Clinicals are an important part of STNA training in Ohio.  They give STNA students real-life experiences in handling the duties they will handle in their working life.

 

Clinicals are supervised sessions conducted in real healthcare environments, like a nursing home, hospital, or clinic, which allow STNA students to put their knowledge and skills to work. STNA clinicals are like mini-internships and they are a critical part of the STNA training in Ohio.  Clinicals allow the STNA student to deal with real patients in a supervised setting before being thrust into real situations without instructors or supervising nurses to step in and assist.

 

During clinicals, the STNA will be assigned to work with patients with a variety of different needs.  They usually work closely with a supervising nurse or trainer, and occasionally with doctors, and other health care providers. The STNA students are rotated through a variety of settings, from intensive care wards to nursing homes to outpatient clinics, so that they get to interact with a wide variety of patients, and to see a broad spectrum of health care interventions and situations.  They get hands-on experience at assisting patients with bathing and feeding, taking vital statistics, observing patients and reading charts.

 

Before being allowed to participate in the clinicals, STNA students must complete a portion of training in the classroom.  This is where they gain the general knowledge of what needs to be done in a medical situation.  This knowledge encompasses everything from common first aid, to dietary and medication basics, to how to provide basic hygiene assistance,and even how to react in specific medical situations.  The classroom will also address the ethical issues STNA students  may encounter in the course of the work. Students are often given an opportunity to work in lab environments, and to “treat” actors or fellow classmates who volunteer to be model patients.

 

In addition to being used to provide educational opportunities, clinicals are also used by the STNA teachers to evaluate their students. Students are expected to thoroughly research their patients, apply all their knowledge, and be prepared to answer questions relating to patient care, the history of the individual patient, and other issues. Supervisors will also observe the way in which the STNA student interacts with the patient; for example, is the student unfriendly or rough, even though the medical care is adequate? These types of observations are used to guide the student, and to determine final grades.

 

For STNA students, nursing clinicals can be intense, because they provide the first opportunity to interact with real patients, and to make decisions which could have very real consequences. Students should remember that they are there to learn, and they should never be afraid to say that they don’t understand something, or don’t feel comfortable performing a procedure without assistance or direction.  It is a critical and necessary part of STNA training in Ohio.

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The STNA and CPR

Monday, April 19th, 2010

Like other medical professionals, a State-Tested Nursing Assistant (STNA) must achieve and maintain a certification in CPR (cardiopulmonary resuscitation). This is a common first-aid technique used to keep victims of heart failure alive and prevent brain damage until more advanced medical intervention can be given. Our STNA training in Ohio teaches our students how to properly administer CPR and save lives.

CPR has two main goals: to keep the blood flowing and to keep air going in and out of the lungs.

If you find a patient who may potentially be in cardiac arrest or unconscious, the first step is to call 911 for additional help. Once help is on the way, check for a pulse. The STNA classes in Ohio show students all the proper techniques for accurately determining whether or not the patient is breathing or has a pulse.

To begin CPR, the victim must be lying on his or her back on a flat surface. Then you begin with the ABCs of CPR. Developed by the American Heart Association, the ABCs are:

Airway

The mouth and throat need to be clear and unobstructed before any CPR can be given. To clear a blocked airway, you should first place the palm of your hand across the victim’s forehead and push down gently. With the other hand, slowly lift the chin forward and slightly up. Move the chin up until the teeth are almost together, but the mouth is still slightly open.

Tilting the head back and lifting the chin in this manner will move the tongue out of the airway. At this point, you will check again for breathing. If the victim is choking on something, you may see their chest heave as they try to breathe, but you won’t be able to feel or hear air being exhaled. If that happens, you may need to compress the abdomen with forceful thrusts or manually dislodge any object with your fingers.

Once this is done, you have to check for signs of breathing again. Just clearing out the windpipe may sometimes be enough to allow the victim to start breathing on their own. If the victim starts breathing and moving around on their own, you should stop CPR. If this doesn’t happen, you’ll have to help them breathe, by providing mouth-to-mouth resuscitation.

Breathing

Lungs have one main function: remove carbon dioxide and take in oxygen. Normally, the muscles in your chest contract and expand your chest cavity, allowing your lungs to fill with air. Oxygen and carbon dioxide diffuse across the immense surface area of your lungs. Finally, your chest muscles relax, and you exhale.

Rescue breathing uses your lungs to force air into the victim’s lungs at regular intervals. The timing of each breath (about 1.5 to 2 seconds per breath) mimics normal breathing. However, the process is much more like blowing up a balloon than real breathing. You inhale deeply, form a tight seal with your mouth over their mouth, and exhale strongly to push air out of your mouth into theirs. Because you also pinch the victim’s nostrils closed, the air has nowhere to go except down into the lungs, which expand as they fill with air.

Mouth-to-mouth breathing is hard work. Normally, when you inhale, the chest muscles drive the process. In artificial respiration, you’re working against the victim’s relaxed chest muscles. When the chest muscles are relaxed, the chest cavity is small, keeping the lungs in a deflated state. As a rescuer, you have to exhale forcefully into the victim’s mouth for 1 to 2 seconds to overcome this resistance. As the lungs fill with air, the victim’s chest is pushed up at the same time; you can actually see it rise. When you remove your mouth from the victim’s and break the air seal, their chest falls and once again deflates the lungs. As in normal breathing, this results in air being exhaled from the victim’s mouth.

Circulation

After giving two full breaths, if you can’t find a pulse, then you need to provide artificial circulation in addition to breathing.

External chest compressions are used to provide artificial circulation. When you apply rhythmic pressure on the lower half of the victim’s breastbone, you force the heart to pump blood. There is a precise timing you must follow to adequately administer chest compressions. Our 3-hour CPR for STNA training classes in Ohio teach you exactly what to do.

Once you have been trained, you must periodically review the procedure. But this training makes you a valuable asset to your family, friends, and neighborhood for years to come.

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8 Questions to Ask Before Becoming a STNA

Monday, April 12th, 2010

 

It takes time and effort to become a State-Tested Nursing Assistant (STNA). It is a rewarding career for some, but it’s not right for everyone. Here are eight questions you should ask yourself before enrolling in our STNA classes in Ohio.

 

1) Do you enjoy health, science and math classes? As a STNA, you will be expected to understand how the human body works, how different medications may interact, and how to gauge and monitor various measurements. It will be very beneficial to you if you enjoy these areas.

 

2) Do you like to help people, even when they are sick? A STNA is first and foremost a helper. Your role would be to help the other nurses and doctors stay informed about the patient’s health conditions. You would be helping the patient and their family with their everyday needs. In many instances, the patient will be unable to do even simple tasks by themselves and will need your help.

 

3) Can you follow directions, but are you confident enough to take some actions on your own? You will need to follow the directions of the doctors and nurses, but when you have enough experience in caring for your patients, you will need to be confident enough to take care of the patient’s needs without close supervision. The doctors and nurses are too busy to tell you everything little thing that needs to be done. You need to have the common sense to recognize what needs to be done and then the confidence to do it without being told.

 

4) Do you communicate well? The STNA is usually the position with the most contact with the patient and is often the go-between to make sure the patient’s questions and concerns are being heard by the doctor and nurses and then make sure the patient and his or her family hears accurate information from the doctors and nurses. A STNA must be able to accurately convey information, without excess emotion or hyperbole to everyone else in the medical care chain.

 

5) Are you patient and thick-skinned? As a STNA on the frontline of patient care, you will have to deal with patients and families who are in pain and ill. As a result, they may say or do mean things. They will complain a lot, they will find fault in everything you do. You have to be able to listen to their criticism, understand that it’s not YOU, but their circumstances, and still maintain a positive, cheerful attitude.

 

6) Are you a good listener? Many times, a patient just needs someone they can talk to. You have to show your patients that you care and hear their concerns. Sometimes, you will have to interpret what they are feeling because their pain cannot allow them to express themselves adequately.

 

7) Do you like working with your hands and doing physical work? The job of a STNA is physically demanding. You will be on your feet a lot, and you will be helping patients button their shirts, brush their teeth and brush their hair. You will not be sitting in an office all day staring at a computer screen.

 

8) Do like a routine where you know what you are going to do every day? Then being a STNA may not be right for you. Every day will be a different challenge. Those individuals who like variety and can adapt to whatever the day brings are the most successful in this type of environment.

 

If you have answered these questions and still want to explore becoming a STNA, we encourage you to check out our STNA training in Ohio.

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What Are the Typical Duties of a STNA?

Monday, April 5th, 2010

A state-tested nursing assistant (STNA), by definition, assists other medical professionals, like doctors, registered nurses, and licensed practical nurses, with patient care. Most STNAs work in health care facilities, such as hospitals or nursing homes. However, a growing number of STNAs are providing care to patients in their homes as home health care workers.

 

The STNA is often the person with the most one-on-one interaction with the patient and is the first to discover any health issues the patient may be experiencing. It is a position of great responsibility in the healthcare of a patient. The STNA training in Ohio teaches nursing assistants how to be successful with many of the following skills:

 

1. Personal Hygiene
One of the most common responsibilities of a STNA is taking care of a patient’s daily personal hygiene needs. This may include assisting the patient with going to the bathroom, brushing his or her teeth, changing clothes, and brushing the patient’s hair. The STNA is also often charged with the task of making sure the bedding is changed regularly and the patient is not developing bed sores. Because of these types of duties, a STNA must be in good physical condition.  It can be a physically challenging role.

 

2. Proper Diet
Making sure the patients maintain a healthy diet is also an important task for the STNA. In cases where the patient cannot feed themselves, the STNA will be expected to feed them. In cases of finicky eaters, the STNA is the one charged with trying to make sure the patient is getting proper nutrition and recording what has been eaten each day so the doctors or nurses can determine if other sources of nutrients are needed.

 

3. Vital Signs
The STNA is often the person who takes and records the regular vital signs for the patient, such as temperature, blood pressure, pulse rate, and respiration statistics. The STNA is trained to look at the results, note any irregularities or surrounding conditions, and point out potential issues to the rest of the medical team.

 

4. Emotional Support
But probably the most important task of the STNA is to provide emotional support and encouragement to the patient and the family. Many times, the patient just needs to know that someone cares. The ability to provide a friendly smile, a kind word, and just being able to listen to the patient are vital skills for every STNA.

 

Top-notch STNA training in Ohio can be found here at Premier Choice Health Services.  Call us today to get registered and get started on your new exciting career.

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