Procedures and skills

Continuous heart rhythm monitoring in which a small device worn by the client sends the ECG signal to a central screen.

Transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation: mild electric pulses sent through pads on the skin to ease pain.

Healing of a contaminated wound that is cleaned and left open for a few days, then closed once no infection shows; also called delayed primary closure.

A procedure in which a needle is passed through the chest wall to remove fluid or air from the space around a lung.

A surgical cut through the chest wall to reach the lungs, heart or other organs in the chest.

A dressing built from a contact layer on the wound, an absorbent layer over it and an outer layer that holds both in place.

Surgical removal of a thrombus, a blood clot that formed inside a vessel and stayed where it formed.

Surgery to remove the thymus, for a thymoma or another tumor of the thymus, or to treat myasthenia gravis.

The amount of air moved in or out of the lungs with one normal breath.

A surgical hand scrub with an antiseptic soap and a soft sponge for the time the antiseptic's maker sets, usually 2 to 6 minutes in all.

A newborn reflex: when the baby's head turns toward one side, the arm and leg on that side stretch out while the opposite limbs bend.

Surgical removal of the palatine tonsils, the two masses of lymph tissue on either side of the back of the throat.

Removal of the whole uterus, including the cervix, through an incision in the abdomen; abbreviated TAH.

Surgery that replaces the worn or damaged ball and socket of the hip joint with artificial parts; also called total hip arthroplasty.

Complete nutrition given as a liquid straight into a vein instead of through the digestive tract.

A band tightened around an arm or leg to slow or stop blood flow below it.

A glaucoma operation that removes a small block of tissue under a flap of sclera to make a new drain for aqueous humor.

A surgical opening through the front of the neck into the windpipe, usually holding a tube that the person breathes through.

The surgical cut made into the windpipe through the front of the neck.

A steady pulling force applied to a body part with weights, ropes and pulleys.

Through the skin; used for medicine absorbed from a patch stuck to the skin.

A thin, firm, smooth plastic board slid under a patient to bridge the gap and slide them from one surface to another.

A harmful response of the body to a blood transfusion.

An organ or tissue moved from one person or body site to another, or the operation that moves it.

A position in which the client lies on the back with the bed tilted so the head is lower than the feet.

A sitting position in which the person leans forward with the hands or elbows resting on the knees or on a table.

Surgical removal of all or part of a turbinate, one of the shelves of bone on the side wall of the nose.

The last step of gowning, in which the wraparound back of a sterile gown is closed with the help of a nonsterile person holding the tie's tab.

Surgical repair of the eardrum and the middle ear, rebuilding the chain of ossicles when needed.

Blood tests done before a transfusion to find a person's blood type and check that donor blood will not react with it.