Safety and Comfort

Ensuring patients' safety by protecting them from harm is one of the main goals of nursing care. As the nurse, you’ll take measures to promote your patient’s safety while ensuring their comfort.

Now, there are several ways you can promote safety and comfort when providing patient care. To ensure you’re providing the right care to the right patient, you should always use at least two patient identifiers, such as their name and date of birth.

You’ll also take steps to decrease medication errors by being familiar with the medications you administer, and always using safe medication administration principles, such as properly labeling medications and having another nurse double check high alert medications, like insulin.

Another way you can promote safety is to keep your patient safe from infections by performing hand hygiene, and using clean or sterile techniques, as indicated.

And you’ll also implement transmission-based precautions, as needed, to protect other patients, their families, and members of the health care team.

For instance, when contact precautions are needed, you’ll place your patient in a private room or cohort them together with other patients who are either infected or colonized with the same infectious agent.

Now, another goal of nursing care is promoting your patient’s comfort. You can do this by adjusting their room temperature, ventilation, and humidity to meet their preferences and medical needs.

You’ll also provide adequate lighting so your patient can navigate their room without injury, but not too bright as to cause discomfort.

Also remember that there are some odors common in the health care setting that can cause your patient to feel nauseated.

You can control these odors by promptly emptying bedpans and bedside commodes; removing used food trays; changing soiled linens as soon as possible; throwing away foul-smelling items in the dirty utility room; and avoiding use of scented products, like wearing perfume.

Lastly, excessive noise can prevent your patient from resting, and can lead to sensory overload; so, remember to speak in lowered voices in the hallway and provide your patient with earplugs to mask noise, as needed.

Okay, so, one of the most important ways to promote safety is to prevent patient falls. As the nurse, you’ll identify factors that put your patient at risk for falling, such as impaired mobility or balance, altered mental status, and sensory deficits, like impaired vision or sensation.

Other risk factors for falls include blood pressure instability and certain medications like sedatives, anticonvulsants, antihypertensives.

The registered nurse will conduct a fall risk assessment when your patient is admitted, at the beginning of every shift, and whenever your patient has a significant change in their condition, like undergoing surgery.

So, when assuming care of your patient, be sure to check their fall risk assessment and implement fall prevention measures, as needed.

Start by orienting your patient to their environment, including the location of the bathroom and how to use the bed controls.

Also show them how to use the call bell whenever they need assistance; and remember to answer it promptly. Before leaving their room, ensure their bed is in the lowest position possible, with wheels locked, and their call bell and personal items, like their glasses or telephone, are within easy reach.

Then, be sure to check them at least every two hours, and offer toileting, food, drinks, or assistance with a position change.

Sometimes your patient will require additional monitoring and vigilance to prevent falls. In this situation, you can place them in a room close to the nurse’s station and alert other staff members of their fall risk.

You can also use bed and chair alarms that work by sensing pressure changes when a patient attempts to exit their bed or chair, causing an alarm to sound.

It’s also helpful to educate your patient’s family and friends about fall prevention and encourage them to stay with them as much as possible; or use a sitter, which is a staff member who’s assigned to stay with patients at all times.

For patients who are ambulatory, provide non-skid footwear and encourage them to use handrails in the halls and grab bars in the bathroom.

Also remove hazards by cleaning up spills as soon as possible and keeping their room free from clutter by removing equipment that isn’t being used anymore.

During ambulation, some patients may require assistive devices to support their mobility and minimize their fall risk. These can include wearing their glasses or contacts, and hearing aids, as well as using mobility devices, like a walker or cane.

You can also apply a gait belt to provide extra support, as needed. Now, if your patient starts to fall, safely lower them into a chair or to the floor, if you’re able, and then immediately call for assistance.

Then, check your patient for signs of injury, notify the health care provider, and complete an incident report. Alright, as a quick recap… Ensuring patient safety is a priority nursing goal.

As the nurse, you’ll take measures to promote your patients’ safety and comfort.