Reflective Account 2 : Temperature measurement
Description
My mentor asked me to take the body temperature of a patient. The patient was a 32 years old female, Mrs W .
I confirmed to my mentor that I am confident to carry out the procedure. I started by introducing myself to the patient and asked for consent to carry out the procedure; Mrs W said that she is happy with the fact that I will take her body temperature as part of the routinel observations( Lefrant et al. 2003,cited in Dougherty & Lister 2015).
I washed my hands before I checked the equipment. I also made sure Mrs W is sitting comfortable; I asked and then checked if she was wearing hearing aids (– she was not wearing hearing aids . The patient was not lying on neither of the
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A higher value of the temperature indicates the presence of a cold or infection or that homoeostasis is not maintained.
Age is a factor that can influence the temperature as old people tend to have a lower body temperature due to being less active and due to the lack of the fat layer below the skin which makes it hard to indicate the presence of an infection ( Medline plus 2015 ). the body temperature is Also higher in the evening then in the morning (Marieb & Hoehn 2010, cited in Dougherty & Lister 2015). Another factor that can influence the body temperature is food consumption including coffee and alcohol or the amount of exercise done (Marieb & Hoehn 2010, cited in Dougherty & Lister 2015). The body surface that is exposed to the environment like cold or heat for example when having a shower or wearing inappropriate clothing ( Wilson's Temperature Syndrome 2016) .As a non-invasive method temperature measurement can be performed using different sites like oral, axillary and tympanic. The rectal has been demonstrated to be the more accurate one but due to his invasive nature and the fact that not only dignity but also privacy of the patients need to be considered , it is not always the first choice. Therefore, although the ear canal route does not provide the most accurate reading as the procedure might not be performed correctly , the tympanic thermometer tents to be preferred not only by the nurses but also by the patients as it is non-invasive, easy to use, safe (Haugan et al. 2013) and the disposable cover is used for prevention and control of infection( Dougherty & Lister
Temperature in most office rooms are kept within 69°F to 73°F which is far too cold for an acceptable sample. A sample with a temperature out of the normal range may be immediately received with suspicion because urine will hold temperature in this range as long as it is received in 4 minutes or less.
Moreover, I will let the patient become familiar with any instruments such as a speculum, and demonstrate the tools that will be used to obtain tissue samples that would be used during the examination. Explaining the procedure is also a significant step; this will allow the patient have a sense of control during the examination as we ask and answer questions about their current state, that would help disseminate any concern they may have. Meanwhile, they can learn about what may happen, related to any body sensations or feelings they can experience during the procedure, all while the provider continues to develop rapport and patient’s trust
The thermometer’s original temperature before coming in contact with an outside object is represented by T. ∆T/∆t is the average temperature of the digital thermometer. represents the temperature of the heat flowing object. In this lab, the temperature of the air is represented by Tair=T. To= Thand is the temperature of the hand.
In this circumstance the nurse will perform a neurological assessment first and then a head to toe assessment. The nurse first of all needs to find a space that is private and comfortable before she undertakes the assessment. She needs to use therapeutic communication, build a rapport with Alice, and also have permission from Alice. The nurse needs to complete a number of individual assessments in order to see the function of Alice’s nervous system. Before the nurse can begin she needs to wash her hands and make sure that they are warm before touching Alice.
clear understanding of the procedure and the issue science vs ethics. She points out the role
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Sweating and Heat Loss Investigation Aim To find out whether heat is lost faster over a sweaty body compared to a dry body. Apparatus 2 Boiling tubes 47ml max 2 Measuring jug 50ml max A Beaker 250ml max 2 thermometers Paper towels A kettle to boil water A stopwatch 2 magnifying glasses (8x) 2 corks with a small hole through the centre A test tube rack Preliminary work In my preliminary work, I need to find out how much water to use, whether the tissue should be wet with hot/cold water, how often the readings should be taken, how accurate should the readings be, how many readings should be taken and what my starting temperature should be. My results are as follows. Starting temperature of 40°c Time (secs) Wet towel (°c) Dry towel (°c) 30 36 38.9 60 35 38.5 90 34 37.9 120 33.9 37.5 150 33 37 180 32.6 36.9 210 32.3 36.8 240 31 36.5 270 30.4 36 300 30.3 35.9 Starting temperature of 65°c Time (secs) Wet towel (°c) Dry towel (°c) 30 51.1 53 60 48.2 51.9 90 46.4 51 120 46 50 150 44.3 49 180 42.9 48.4 210 42.6 46.9 240 41.7 48 270 40.2 47.5 300 39.3 47 Starting temperature of 60°c Time (secs) Wet towel (°c) Dry towel (°c)
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