Nursing Assessment: General Survey and Vital Signs

General Survey and Vital Signs

• The general survey involves gathering information about a patient's overall health and physical condition.
• This assessment focuses on four key areas: • General appearance and behavior • Body habitus and build • Facial expression and eye contact • Gait and posture

Body Mass Index (BMI)

• BMI is calculated to assess a patient's weight in relation to their height.
• BMI results are interpreted as follows: • Underweight: BMI < 18.5 • Normal weight: BMI = 18.5-24.9 • Overweight: BMI = 25-29.9 • Obese: BMI ≥ 30

Mental Health Status Assessment

• This assessment involves evaluating a patient's emotional and psychological well-being.
• Factors considered include: • Food preferences and dislikes • Ability to feed oneself • Changes in appetite, chewing, or swallowing • Food allergies or intolerance

Pain Assessment

• Pain is a subjective experience that cannot be directly measured.
• Two types of pain are: • Deep somatic pain: originates from sources such as blood vessels, joints, tendons, muscles, and bone • Cutaneous pain: originates from the skin surface and subcutaneous tissues
• A series of questions helps the examiner assess the subjective report of pain.