"Developing Practical Nursing Skills, Fourth Edition, will help you to learn and perfect the practical skills required to become a qualified nurse. Patient-focussed and adopting a caring approach, this essential text will also help you to integrate nursing values alongside physical skills in your daily practice. Key features include: Full colour text design with clear illustrations and clinical photographs to aid visual learning, Evidence-based and clearly mapped to key guidelines to ensure best practice, Reader-friendly style with learning outcomes, activities and reflection points to help you link theory to practice, Scenarios from a range of settings, including community, mental health and learning disabilities nursing, A focus on adults and young people, and with "pointers" on caring for children to promote a lifespan approach, Free companion website providing image library, videos of key skills, and MCQs as well as additional resources for lecturers to download. This is a complete clinical skills resource for all pre-registration nursing students"-- Provided by publisher

Practical nursing skills: A caring approach; Lesley Baillie The nature of practical nursing skills; The context for practical nursing skills; Practical skills and their application across the life span and in different healthcare settings; A caring and compassionate approach to practical nursing skills; Cultural competence and practical nursing skills; Dignity and practical nursing skills; Learning practical nursing skills; Recommended reading; Chapter summary; References; Useful websites; ; The nurse's approach and communication: Foundations for compassionate care ; Joanne Sale and Nicola M. Neale; Practice scenarios; Understanding what influences the nurse's approach to care; The communication process; Developing and maintaining therapeutic relationships; Communication in challenging situations; Chapter summary; Answer to abbreviations (activity section 2); References; ; Infection prevention and control; Patricia Folan and Lesley Baillie Practice scenarios; Principles for preventing HCAI: An introduction; Hand hygiene; Use of personal protective equipment, including gloves, Aprons and gowns; Healthcare waste disposal and linen management; Sharps disposal; Healthcare environmental hygiene and multiuse equipment; Aseptic technique; Specimen collection: Key principles; MRSA screening and suppression procedures; Isolation procedures (source and protective); Chapter summary; References; ; Measuring and monitoring vital signs; Sue Maddex Practice scenarios; Equipment required for this chapter; Key principles in vital signs measurement; Measuring and recording temperature; Measuring and recording the pulse; Measuring and recording respirations; Measuring and recording blood pressure; Measuring oxygen saturation by pulse oximetry; Neurological assessment; Chapter summary; References; ; Administering medicines; Kirsty Andrews and Martina O'Brien Practice scenarios; Legal and professional issues in medicine administration; Safety, Storage and general principles of medicine administration; Administering oral medication; Applying topical medication; Administering medication by injection routes; Administering inhaled and nebulised medication; Intravenous fluid and blood administration; Calculating medicine and intravenous fluid administration doses; Preventing and managing anaphylaxis; Chapter summary; Acknowledgement; Answers to exercises; References; ; Caring for people with impaired mobility; Glynis Pellatt Practice scenarios; Pressure ulcer risk assessment; Pressure ulcer prevention; Prevention of other complications of immobility; Key principles of moving and handling people; Assisting with mobilisation and preventing falls; Chapter summary; References; ; Principles of wound care; Janine Ashton Practice scenarios; The phases of wound healing; Classification of wounds and wound closure; Factors affecting wound. Healing; Wound assessment; Wound management; Chapter summary; References; Useful websites; ; Meeting personal hygiene needs; Moira Walker Practice scenarios; Rationale for meeting hygiene needs and potential hazards; Bathing a person in bed; Bathing and showering in the bathroom; Facial shaving; Oral hygiene; Care of the body after death; Chapter summary; Acknowledgement; References; ; Meeting elimination needs; Lesley Baillie and Rachel Busuttil Leaver Practice scenarios; Assisting with elimination: Helping people to use the toilet, bedpans, Urinals and commodes; Urinalysis; Collecting urine and stool specimens; Caring for people with urinary catheters; Preventing and managing constipation; Stoma care; Promoting continence and managing incontinence; Chapter summary; References; ; Assessing and meeting fluid and nutritional needs; Sue Maddex Practice scenarios; Nutrition in healthcare: Concerns and initiatives; Recognising the contribution of nutrition to health; Assessing and maintaining hydration; Promoting healthy eating and addressing people's choices; Nutritional screening; Assisting people with eating and drinking; Additional nutritional support strategies; Enteral and parenteral feeding; Chapter summary; Acknowledgement; References; ; Assessing physical health and responding to sudden deterioration; Sue Maddex and Tracey Valler-Jones Practice scenarios; Equipment required for this chapter; Recognising and responding to. People who are deteriorating: An overview; Airway management problems and related skills; Breathing problems and related skills; Circulatory problems and related skills; Unconsciousness and related skills; Chapter summary; References; Useful websites; ; Managing pain and promoting comfort and sleep; Dee Burrows, Lesley Baillie and Stephanie Forge Practice scenarios; Managing pain in a variety of settings; Promoting comfort; Promoting sleep; Chapter summary; Acknowledgement; References; Websites.