Medical nursing can be defined as the art of curing patients not
only physically, but also mentally. Hence, the profession of nursing
is considered very important in the medical field.
Patients can lose their mental balance or may eventually die, if not
properly taken care of, after any major operation. At this point, the
service of a nurse matters a lot. There is a specialized branch of
nursing, which takes care of mentally distressed, while there can be
nursing in other fields.
Medical Nursing For Psychiatric Patients
Medical nursing care for mentally ill or retarded patients are of
two types – basic and advanced nursing. As a basic-level nurse, you
have to try to assess the mental condition of the patients. You have to
diagnose the exact problems and evaluate the level of medical nursing
care, your patient has already received and how much more is actually
required. Counseling at such level is considered very crucial.
Time-to-time monitoring can also be very helpful in these
circumstances.
Advanced level nurses need to have a Master’s degree in
psychiatric-mental health nursing. Their job starts from the basic
level like taking care of patients; but their role is not restricted to
that of a mere psychotherapist, instead, an advanced nurse needs to act
as an educator, a consultant, an advanced case manager and an
administrator. In many states of U.S., the advanced level nurses are
assigned the authority of prescribing medicines.
Medical Nursing – The Methods To Be Followed
- Records – Maintaining patient-records is very important and
as a nurse, you should be attentive while writing case histories. The
record actually serves as evidence and enables other medical experts to
treat the patients with least difficulty in any later stage.
- Infection Control – There are certain sanitary rules, which
should be strictly followed otherwise, this can trigger various
infections, which can be detrimental for the health of the patients. As
a nurse, you should wash hand thoroughly with soap in running water,
after smoking, coughing, drinking or washing clothes. Wearing gloves
helps keep infection and other such problems in check.
- Medication – As mentioned earlier, in some countries
advanced nurses have the authority to prescribe medicines to the
patients, without even referring to a physician.
- Temperature – Taking temperature from time to time is very
important. A nurse should be aware of the ways of taking temperature.
The thermometer can be placed in the mouth or the rectum for three
minutes or in the armpit for a minimum of 10 minutes. Remember, that
the normal body temperature is 37 degree Celsius or 98.6 degrees
Fahrenheit. Temperature rise above this normal mark can call for a
medical emergency.
- Diet – In the field of medical nursing, proper diet is important. The type of illness determines the diet of the patient.
The medical nursing profession has diverse roles for nurses like,
nurse practitioner, registered nurse, home nurse, health nurse. As a
nurse, you can be given assorted tasks, which you have to accomplish
with accuracy. This incorporates, consulting clinical staff, providing
direction to staff, monitoring the patients’ condition, maintaining
records and so on.
Medical nursing can be very simple, provided you have full dedication and love for the job.