Assisting with dressing a dependent patient can be done easily when you know how to do the step by step process thoroughly. If you are unfamiliar with these steps, chances are you will be doing it the wrong way which can either harm your resident or fail you in your CNA certification exam. Make sure that you have studied these steps well in order to provide the best possible CNA service that you can give to your patients. After applying these steps for a couple of times, you will surely be able to handle this task very easily.
The first step is to greet your patient and introduce yourself after knocking on their door. This is to ensure that you are not violating their rights to privacy and that you are respecting their need for personal space. After this, explain to your patient what you will be doing, which is to assist them with dressing themselves, and then try to describe what the process would take. Wash your hands thoroughly before handling the patient and wear protective gloves. This is to make sure that you do not contaminate the patient with bacteria that you may be carrying from the outside.
The next step is to tell your patient that you will be undressing them first on their weak side. Depending therefore in which side the patient’s weaker part is, you will start to undress them first. Do not try to do all of the undressing by you and get the patient to participate as much as they can on the whole process. Ask them also if they want to undress by themselves or if they want sufficient privacy while they do so. You should try to maintain as much space as can be comfortable for the patient. Encourage them to take initiative on their own and to exercise themselves in the care of themselves.
The new set of clothes should already be close by when you start to undress the patient. After the patient is fully undressed try to dress them starting from the stronger side of his body first. This is the complete reverse of undressing them starting from the weaker side. For example if his weaker side is in the left side, then you should start dressing the patient from their right. It is also important to encourage the patient to exert as much effort as they can when dressing in order to develop his personal independence.
You will have to notice any sign of fatigue in the patient during the whole process. Try to make them sit once they start to get tired or experience difficulty with the dressing process.
After dressing, you also have to place the patients dirty clothes in the hamper and then remove your gloves and wash your hands thoroughly. Make sure that their call light is within his reach and everything that they may need is easily accessible to them. Explain that you are going and that the procedure is finished before you leave.