05-06 Graduate Student Handbook.pdf - University of Kentucky

Technical Standards - University of Kentucky College of Nursing
http://www.mc.uky.edu/nursing/StuResources/grads/handbook2005-06/tech_stand.htm
Page 2 of 3
2/23/2011
observing skin, anatomic structures and body movements; reading and understanding written
and illustrated material; seeing class and clinical demonstrations; and discriminating numbers
and patterns associated with patient care instruments and tests, such as sphygmomanometers,
electrocardiograms, and urine output.
Communication
Students must be able to communicate quickly and effectively in oral and written English.
They must be able to relate well to patients and their families, conveying compassion and
empathy. They must be able to elicit information from patients; accurately describe changes in
mood, activity, and posture; and perceive verbal and nonverbal cues. Students must learn to
recognize and appropriately respond to emotions such as sadness, worry, fear, and anger in
patients.
Specific requirements include, but are not limited to, the following: eliciting pain levels from
patients, providing patient teaching, and reporting changes in patient states to other members
of the health care team. Students must be able to read and record observations and plans
legibly, efficiently, and accurately in documents such as the patient record. They must be able
to prepare and convey concise, yet complete, summaries of encounters with patients. Students
must be able to complete forms according to directions in a timely fashion.
Sensory and Motor Coordination and Function
Students must have sufficient sensory and motor function to perform a physical examination
using palpation, auscultation, percussion, and other diagnostic maneuvers. In general, this
requires sufficient exteroceptive sense (touch, pain, temperature), proprioceptive sense
(position, pressure, movement, stereognosis, vibration), physical strength, and motor function.
Students should be able to execute sufficient motor skills to provide general care and to
competently use patient care equipment, such as intravenous monitors, sterile equipment,
catheters, etc.
They must respond promptly to emergencies and must not hinder the ability of coworkers to
provide prompt treatment and care. Examples of emergency treatment reasonably required of
nursing students include responding quickly when called, initiating appropriate therapeutic
procedures, administering intravenous medication, applying pressure to stop bleeding, and
performing cardiopulmonary resuscitation.
Students must learn to perform basic laboratory tests, diagnostic and therapeutic procedures,
and patient care procedures such as a finger stick, dressing change, and starting an intravenous
line.
Conceptualization, Integration, and Quantification
These abilities include measuring, calculating, reasoning, analyzing, judging, recognizing
numbers, and synthesizing. Problem solving - a critical skill demanded of nurses - requires
these intellectual abilities and must be performed quickly, especially in emergency situations.
Students must learn to identify significant findings from patient history, physical exam, and
laboratory data, and retain and recall information. They must be able to arrive at a nursing
diagnosis and plan and evaluate outcomes of care. Students must be able to provide reasoned
explanations for their diagnoses, learn to prescribe therapies, which may include medications,
and become skilled in managing time, people, and resources, according to their level of
educational preparation.