Salem Nursing Application

Technical Standards

Introduction

Certain functional abilities are essential for the delivery of safe, effective nursing care.  These abilities are essential in the sense that they constitute core components of nursing practice, and there is a high probability that negative consequences will result for patient/clients under the care of nurses who fail to demonstrate these abilities.  A program preparing students for the practice of nursing must attend to these essential functional abilities in the education and evaluation of its students.

This statement of the Technical Standards of the Nursing Program at Chemeketa Community College identifies the functional abilities deemed by the nursing faculty to be essential to the practice of nursing.  Reference materials used in the development of these standards include Division 45 of the Administrative Rules of the Oregon State Board of Nursing (Standards and Scope of Practice for the Licensed Practical Nurse and the Registered Nurse); The Functional Abilities Essential for the Delivery of Safe, Effective Nursing Care (a 1999 descriptive research study conducted by the National Council of State Boards of Nursing); and Core Components and Competencies of ADN graduates developed by the Council of Associate Degree Nursing of the National League for Nursing (1999).  The Technical Standards are reflected in the Nursing Program’s Performance-based Outcomes, which are the basis for teaching and evaluating all nursing students.

Students with disabilities who think they may require accommodation in meeting the Technical Standards of the Nursing Program should contact the Office of Disability Services to discuss the process of identifying reasonable accommodations.  This office is located in Building 2, first floor (telephone 503.399.5192 [voice/TTY] or email disability@chemeketa.edu).  Students should seek accommodation advising as soon as possible after admission to the nursing program so that a plan for accommodation can be in place at the beginning of the program.  Applicants seeking admission into the nursing program who may have questions about the technical standards and appropriate reasonable accommodations are invited to discuss their questions with the Office of Disability Services.  Reasonable accommodation will be directed toward providing an equal educational opportunity for students with disabilities while adhering to the standards of nursing practice for all students. 

Standards

The practice of Nursing requires the following functional abilities with or without reasonable accommodations:

1. Visual acuity sufficient to assess patients and their environments and to implement the nursing care plans that are developed from such assessments.
   Examples of relevant activities:
   • Detect changes in skin color or condition
   • Collect data from recording equipment and measurement devices used in patient care
   • Detect a fire in a patient area and initiate emergency action
   • Draw up the correct quantity of medication into a syringe
     
2. Hearing ability sufficient to assess patients and their environments and to implement the nursing care plans that are developed from such assessments.
   Examples of relevant activities:
   • Detect sounds related to bodily functions using a stethoscope
   • Detect audible alarms within the frequency and volume ranges of the sounds generated by mechanical systems that monitor bodily functions
   • Communicate clearly in telephone conversations
   • Communicate effectively with patients and with other members of the healthcare team
     
3. Olfactory ability sufficient to assess patients and to implement the nursing care plans that are developed from such assessments.
   Examples of relevant activities:
   • Detect foul odors of bodily fluids or spoiled foods
   • Detect smoke from burning materials
     
4. Tactile ability sufficient to assess patients and to implement the nursing care plans that are developed from such assessments.
   Examples of relevant activities:
   • Detect changes in skin temperature
   • Detect unsafe temperature levels in heat-producing devices used in patient care
   • Detect anatomical abnormalities, such as subcutaneous crepitus, edema, or infiltrated intravenous fluid
   • Detect changes in respiration rate
     
5. Strength and mobility sufficient to perform patient care activities and emergency procedures.
   Examples of relevant activities:
   • Safely transfer patients in and out of bed and assist them with ambulation using appropriate assistive devices
   • Safely control the fall of a patient, by slowly lowering the patient
   • Turn and position patients as needed to prevent complications due to bed rest
   • Hang intravenous bags at the appropriate level
   • Accurately read the volumes in body fluid collection devices hung below bed level
   • Perform cardiopulmonary resuscitation
     
6. Fine motor skills sufficient to perform psychomotor skills integral to patient care.
   Examples of relevant activities:
   • Safely dispose of needles in sharps containers
   • Accurately place and maintain position of stethoscope for detecting sounds of bodily functions
   • Manipulate small equipment and containers, such as syringes, vials, ampules, and medication packages, to administer medications
     
7. Physical endurance sufficient to complete assigned periods of clinical practice.
   
8. Ability to speak, comprehend, read, and write in English at a level that meets the need for accurate, clear, and effective communication.
   
9. Emotional stability to function effectively under stress, to adapt to changing situations, and to follow through on assigned patient care responsibilities.
   
10. Cognitive ability to collect, analyze, and integrate information and knowledge to make clinical judgments and management decisions that promote positive patient outcomes.

Updated April 2009 by the Health Sciences Department.