Rapid Trauma Assessment: What Nurses Need to Know- 1CH

Course overview

Target audience: The target audience for this education program is nurses who want to improve their ability to assess and care for patients that have experienced physical trauma. Course overview: Trauma care occurs wherever nurses care for injured patients. This can range from pre-hospital assistance through emergency department resuscitation, surgery and recuperation, to return to the community (Emergency Nurses Association, 2014). Although trauma assessment is most often associated with emergency department nursing, rapid and thorough physical assessment is a skill set all nurses can use when they need to act quickly to care for patients in acute distress. This education program reviews the steps performed in a primary and secondary trauma assessment and discusses the emotional impact of trauma on the patient, the family, and the nurse. Course objectives By the end of this educational activity, the nurse will be able to: Identify the requirements for providing effective trauma care. Describe the rationale for utilizing a standardized “primary” and “secondary” system of head-to-toe assessment with trauma patients. Recognize triggers among trauma nurses that may cause moral/emotional distress.