This course provides the students with the knowledge and skill necessary to perform a comprehensive health assessment utilizing the skills of history taking, inspection, palpation, percussion, and auscultation. Normal assessment findings, frequently seen variations from normal and cultural differences are discussed.
The course is taught online for 10 weeks and covers ten sessions which cover introduction and inquiry of health history, physical assessment from head to toe, common symptoms assessment and making nursing diagnosis, normal and common abnormal ECGs, common laboratory tests and the clinical significance of common abnormalities.
Upon successful completion of the course, the student will:
1. Demonstrate history-taking and interviewing skills necessary for comprehensive data collection.
2. Demonstrate beginning level skill in the techniques of physical exam: inspection, palpation, percussion, and auscultation.
3. Differentiate between normal and abnormal assessment findings.
4. Apply relevant anatomy and physiology to the health assessment process. 5. Integrate health assessment into the nursing process and nursing practice.
6. Differentiate between normal and abnormal ECGs and lab tests.
7. Make nursing diagnosis based on clinical cases.
This course will facilitate you to learn the clinical courses well to be a good nurse.
Unit 1 Introduction and health history taking
1-1 Course introduction
1-2 Taking health history
1-3 Basic methods of physical assessment-inspection & palpation
1-4 Basic methods of physical assessment-percussion
1-5 Basic methods of physical assessment-auscultation & olfactory
Unit 1 Test
Unit 1 Assignment
Unit 2 General Assessment
2-1 Habitus and nutritional status
2-2 Facial features and expressions
2-3 Posture，position and gait
2-4 Skin
2-5 Lympth nodes
Unit 2 test
Unit 2 Assignment
Unit 3 Head & Neck Assessment
3-1 Head assessment I
3-2 Head assessment II
3-3 Neck assessment
Unit 3 test
Unit 3 Assignment
Unit 4 Chest wall, Thorax, Breast, and Lungs Assessment
4-1 Landmarks of the chest wall
4-2 Inspection- Chest wall and thorax assessment
4-3 Inspection- Breathing movement
4-4 Palpation
4-5 Percussion
4-6 Auscultation- Normal & abnormal breath sounds
4-7 Auscultations-Rales
4-8 Breasts Assessment
Unit 4 Test
Unit 4 Assignment
Unit 5 Heart and Vascular Assessment
5-1 Heart Anatomy
5-2 Inspection
5-3 Palpation
5-4 Percussion
5-5 Auscultation- Part I-Normal Cardiac Sounds
5-6 Auscultation- Part II-Abnormal Cardiac Sounds & extra heart sounds
5-7 Auscultation-Part III-Murmurs
5-8 Auscultation -Part IV-Murmurs & Pericardial Friction Sounds
5-9 Vascular Assessment
Unit 5 Test
Unit 5 Assignment
Unit 6 Abdomen Assessment
6-1 Landmarks of the abdominal wall and abdominal areas
6-2 Inspection I
6-3 Inspection II
6-4 Auscultation
6-5 Percussion
6-6 Palpation-General palpation
6-7 Palpation- Organ Palpation
Unit 6 Assignment
Unit 6 Test
Unit 7 Spine, Extremities, Joints and Neurological Examination
7-1 Spine, extremities and joints assessment
7-2 Sensory examinations
7-3 Motor examinations
7-4 Neurological reflex
Unit 7 Test
Unit 7 Assignment
Unit 8 Psycho-social Assessment, Symptom Assessment, and Nursing Diagnosis
8-1 Psychological assessment
8-2 Social assessment
8-3 Symptom assessment- Pain assessment
8-4 Symptom assessment-Edema assessment
8-5 Symptom assessment-Dyspnea assessment
8-6 Symptom assessment-Consciousness assessment
8-7 Nursing diagnoses
Unit 8 Test
Unit 8 Assignment
Unit 9 Electrocardiogram (ECG)
9-1Basic Knowledge of ECG
9-2 The 12-leads of ECG and hexaxial system
9-3 Vectors and axis deviation
9-4 Configuration and representation of waves and segments in ECG
9-5 Calculating heart rate
9-6 P wave-1
9-7 P wave-2
9-8 PR Interval
9-9 QRS complex -1
9-10 QRS complex-2
9-11 ST segment
9-12 T wave
9-13 Other
Unit 9 Test
Unit 9 Assignment
Unit 10 Laboratory Examination
10-1 Hematologic examination
10-2 Urine and stool examination
10-3 Kidney and liver functions & punture fluid examination
10-4 Blood biochemical examination
Unit 10 Assignment
Unit 10 Test