Abstract
Nurses rely too heavily on risk assessment, and it is now time to put the art back into nursing through measures such as weighing patients, argues Liz Lees
I believe all patients should be weighed on admission to hospital. The reasons for this were taught in my nurse training (1988–1991), and they remain unchanged, despite the evolution of nursing practice towards a risk assessment culture.
Three main principles form the basis of why we should weigh patients: to monitor the extent of loss in organ function; to judge the effectiveness of medications (mainly diuretics); and to enable calculation of medication dosage.
I believe all patients should be weighed on admission to hospital. The reasons for this were taught in my nurse training (1988–1991), and they remain unchanged, despite the evolution of nursing practice towards a risk assessment culture.
Three main principles form the basis of why we should weigh patients: to monitor the extent of loss in organ function; to judge the effectiveness of medications (mainly diuretics); and to enable calculation of medication dosage.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Number of pages | 1 |
| Journal | Nursing times |
| Volume | 105 |
| Issue number | 27 |
| Publication status | Published - 9 Jul 2009 |
| Externally published | Yes |
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- General Nursing
Fingerprint
Dive into the research topics of 'Nurses must ensure patients are weighed on admission to hospital.'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.Cite this
- APA
- Standard
- Harvard
- Vancouver
- Author
- BIBTEX
- RIS