References
Monitoring temperature
Abstract
This article explains the importance of temperature monitoring observations and highlights that the procedure is a fundamental aspect of nursing care. It discusses the physiology of temperature regulation, introduces different types of temperature monitoring devices and provides a step-by-step guide on how to take a temperature using a tympanic thermometer. It emphasises the importance of evidence-based practice to underpin temperature monitoring, as well as conditions that it is important for nurses to consider when recording patients' temperatures.
Temperature is defined as ‘the degree of internal heat of the body’ (White et al, 2011). Temperature monitoring is a fundamental nursing skill and, when assessing a patient's temperature, it is important to place the numerical value of the reading in the context of the patient's presenting condition and symptoms.
A patient's temperature should always be recorded when conducting vital signs monitoring checks (Bickley, 2016). The assessment of temperature as an initial clinical examination allows practitioners to gain a greater insight into the patient's current condition, so that more appropriate treatment and care can be given. Temperature monitoring should also be used to measure the effectiveness of, and track the side effects arising from, any intervention delivered to the patient (Bickley, 2016), such as taking a temperature preoperatively to monitor the effects of an anaesthetic.
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