BONENT CHN study guide
BONENT CHN · Work through your exam, one topic at a time.
The Certified Hemodialysis Nurse (CHN) credential is issued by the Board of Nephrology Examiners Nursing and Technology, Inc. (BONENT), an organization that marked 50 years of dedication to dialysis in 2024. The BONENT CHN study guide has 5 sections and about 1,518 words.
01Clinical Practice of Hemodialysis Nursing
Assess the patient before touching the machine: weight, BP (lying and standing), pulse, temperature, and the access - palpate for a thrill, auscultate for a bruit, inspect for redness, swelling, or drainage. Compare pre-weight with the target (dry) weight; the difference is the starting point for the ultrafiltration goal, not the whole answer.
319 words, about 2 min02Renal Anatomy, Physiology, and Pathophysiology
The functional unit is the nephron. The glomerulus filters; the proximal tubule reabsorbs the bulk of sodium, water, glucose, and amino acids, reclaims bicarbonate, and activates vitamin D; the loop of Henle builds the medullary gradient; the distal tubule handles sodium, chloride, and calcium; the collecting duct responds to ADH and aldosterone.
299 words, about 1 min03Dialysis Equipment, Dialyzers, and Extracorporeal Circuit
Blood leaves the access, passes the pre-pump arterial pressure monitor, the blood pump, a heparin infusion point, the dialyzer, the venous drip chamber with its pressure monitor, the air/foam detector, and returns to the patient. Pre-pump arterial pressure is normally negative; a very negative reading means the access is not delivering - kink, infiltration, hypotension, or a needle against the vessel wall.
314 words, about 2 min04Water Treatment and Dialysate Preparation
Municipal water → backflow prevention → particulate filters → water softener (exchanges calcium and magnesium for sodium, removing hardness) → carbon tanks (adsorb chlorine and chloramine) → reverse osmosis (removes ions, bacteria, endotoxin) → storage and loop → ultrafilters or UV at point of use. RO performance is tracked by conductivity and percent rejection.
293 words, about 1 min05Infection Control and Patient Safety
Perform hand hygiene before and after every patient contact and before and after glove use. Wear gloves for cannulation and any blood exposure, and eye/face protection when splashing is possible.
293 words, about 1 min