General Patient Care

Catalog description

This course is an introduction to patient care in an orthopaedic environment. Students will be introduced to the basic elements of professional interaction with patients, their families, and the orthopaedic surgeon. Topics include communication skills, orthopaedic terminology and abbreviations, medication fundamentals critical to orthopaedics, OSHA standards, patient safety, patient transfers, and patient education. Students will learn to take blood pressure, pulse, BMI measurements, wound care, and routine and emergency procedures. Upon completion, students should be able to describe the fundamentals of orthopedic patient care, as well as perform basic procedures such as obtaining vital signs and wound care.