Staying Healthy & Safe
You will learn how to support a participant to stay healthy and safe and avoid preventable deaths.
In this course, you will learn how to support a participant to stay both healthy and safe. The Visions courses so far emphasized choice and surrounding an individual with what is important to them. The Staying Healthy and Safe course focuses on ensuring that what is important for the participant is addressed.
In order to stay healthy and safe, we must first understand what good health looks like and how to stay healthy. This also includes avoiding preventable deaths by recognizing the causes and risk factors. You will also learn what to do when faced with an emergency.
The overarching goals for this course are as follows:
Supporting a participant to stay healthy and safe by:
- Recognizing factors that could potentially cause illness or injury, and
- Preventing illness and injury.
Avoiding preventable deaths by:
- Knowing the causes,
- Knowing the risk factors, and
- Knowing what to do in an emergency.
Due to the length of this course, the lessons are split up into four main modules: (1) What is Good Health, (2) Supporting Good Health, (3) Fatal Five, and (4) Documentation and Record Keeping. The course concludes with Module 5: Summary.
Objectives
Module 1: What is Good Health?
At the end of the lesson, you will be able to:
- Identify and describe the health indicators that are used to monitor health status.
- Identify if a participant is experiencing changes in a health indicator.
At the end of the lesson, you will be able to:
- Describe the vital signs: body temperature, pulse, respiration, and blood pressure.
- Identify the factors that can impact the four vital signs.
- Identify the normal ranges of each vital sign.
- Describe pulse.
- Identify the factors that can impact a person’s pulse rate.
- Identify the normal ranges of pulse rate.
At the end of the lesson, you will be able to:
- Identify a participant’s baseline using daily observations and documentation.
- Recognize changes to a participant’s health status based on their baseline.
Module 2: Supporting Good Health
At the end of the lesson, you will be able to:
- Describe the requirements of the Physician’s Evaluation Form.
- Understand your responsibilities regarding documentation for examinations, evaluations, progress notes, and other applicable health care documents.
- Define “baseline.”
- Identify the actions required when there are significant changes in a participant’s baseline.
- Recognize the signs of a heart attack and stroke and when to call 911.
At the end of the lesson, you will be able to:
- Identify the difference between a routine and a ritual.
- Identify the difference between Important To and Important For.
- Define the three types of infection (viral, bacterial, and fungal).
- Describe reinfection, cross infection, universal precautions, disinfection, and sterilization.
- Describe the links involved in breaking the chain of infection.
- Describe recommendations for preventing infection.
- Describe the steps of proper hand washing.
At the end of the lesson, you will be able to:
- Identify the strengths and abilities that should be considered when providing personal care.
- Describe the guidelines and tips for safe lifting and transferring.
- Describe and give details for the three common transfer techniques.
- Describe the five troublesome areas for wheelchairs and the recommendations for safe transport of the participant for each: (1) up curbs, (2) down curbs, (3) stairs and steps, (4) slopes, ramps and hills and (5) uneven ground.
- Identify the recommendations for specialized equipment.
Module 3: Fatal Five
At the end of the lesson, you will be able to:
- Identify what aspiration is and the possible signs of aspiration.
- Identify what dysphagia is and the possible signs of dysphagia.
- Identify the risk factors of aspiration and dysphagia.
- Identify “what to do” and when to call 911 if a person is actively aspirating.
- Use the Aspiration Screening Tool.
- Identify what dehydration is.
- Identify the symptoms of dehydration.
- Identify “what to do” if a participant is dehydrated.
- Identify the risk factors of dehydration and how to prevent dehydration.
- Identify what a bowel obstruction is.
- Identify the symptoms and risk factors of bowel obstruction.
- Identify “what to do” if a participant has a bowel obstruction and when to call 911.
- Identify what a seizure is.
- Identify potential outcomes when seizure activity does not stop.
- Identify “what to do” if a participant is having a seizure and when to call 911.
- Identify the condition of gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD).
- Identify the signs and symptoms of GERD.
- Identify the risk factors and prevention recommendations of GERD.
- Identify “what to do” if a participant has signs and symptoms of GERD.
Module 4: Documentation and Record Keeping
At the end of the lesson, you will be able to:
- Identify the information that caregivers are responsible for updating and maintaining.
- Identify what should be included in a DAP (Data, Assessment, Plannote).
At the end of the lesson, you will be able to:
- Identify the components of a nurse delegation plan.
Course Workbook
🖨 Print the Staying Health and Safe Workbook (PDF), or print the full Visions Workbooks (PDF).
Use the workbook to take notes, prepare for quizzes, and keep as a reference for the future.
