Simon Says, “Use this Head-to-Toe Assessment Checklist”
If you played a game of Simon Says to teach the head-to-toe assessment checklist, the game would probably last forever. That’s because most head-to-toe checklists include over 100 different items.
Instead of teaching the 100+ items in a nursing textbook, nursing professors should consider teaching the health assessment in stages.
Simon Says, “Begin with the Basics”
To introduce new nursing students to the health assessment, begin with the basics. What are the basics? The basics are those thirty or so skills regularly performed by RNs when performing a head-to-toe assessment.
In 2007, Dr Jean F. Giddens published a study that identified those thirty or so skills. As Giddens points out in her article, these thirty or so skills may be a key to better preparing students for working in entry-level practices.
Simon Says, “Build on those Basics”
When students have learned the basics, then it’s time to teach those more irregular and specialized tasks that also make up a traditional head-to-toe assessment checklist. An incremental approach to teaching the physical assessment in nursing ensures more students are more prepared for the workforce.
Simon Says, “Download this Head-to-Toe Assessment Checklist”
So based on Dr. Giddens work (and more recent studies that have reinforced her findings*), we’ve created a beautifully designed a head-to-toe assessment checklist for professors to use in the classroom.
That’s why GoReact worked with consulted with Dr. Michael Bumbach, who is doing wonderful research in skill competency for the head-to-toe assessment, to also provide a more advanced head-to-toe assessment checklist.
To adopt this approach in your classroom, just download the free head-to-toe assessment checklist!
This article was brought to you by GoReact, the #1 video tool for procedural and patient communication skills. Healthcare programs use GoReact for skills assessment and clinical training. GoReact allows educators to capture student procedures on video for feedback, grading, and critique. Learn more at GoReact.com.
Bibliography
Anderson, B., Nix, E., Norman, B., & Mcpike, H. D. (2014). An evidence based approach to undergraduate physical assessment practicum course development. Nurse Education in Practice, 14(3), 242–246.
Giddens, J. (2007). A survey of physical assessment techniques performed by RNs: lessons on nursing education. Journal of Nursing Education, 46(2), 83–87.
Kohtz, C., Brown, S. C., Williams, R., & O’Connor, P. A. (2017). Physical assessment techniques in nursing education: a replicated study. Journal of Nursing Education, 56(5), 287–291.
