SGPGI Nursing Officer key terms

Microorganisms that live harmlessly on or inside the body, such as skin staphylococci and gut Escherichia coli. They compete with pathogens for space and nutrients and can cause infection when displaced.

An infection a patient acquires in a hospital or other healthcare setting that was not present or incubating on admission. Common examples include catheter-associated urinary infection, ventilator-associated pneumonia, and surgical site infection.

Routine infection-control measures applied to every patient regardless of diagnosis, including hand hygiene, gloves, gowns, masks, eye protection, and safe handling of sharps and body fluids.

Cleaning hands with soap and water or alcohol-based rub at defined moments such as before patient contact, before aseptic tasks, after body-fluid exposure, after patient contact, and after touching surroundings.

Sorting hospital waste at the point of generation into colour-coded containers: yellow for incineration, red for recycling, white translucent for sharps, and blue for glassware and metallic implants.

The core physiological measurements of temperature, pulse, respiration, blood pressure, and oxygen saturation, used to detect deterioration and monitor response to treatment.

Rapid sorting of patients by urgency so that life-threatening conditions receive care first. Colour tags or priority levels guide the order of assessment and transfer.

A numerical score built from routine observations such as respiratory rate, oxygen saturation, blood pressure, pulse, temperature, and consciousness, triggering escalation when it crosses set thresholds.

A patient's voluntary agreement to a procedure after receiving information on its nature, risks, benefits, and alternatives. It must be given by a competent person, ideally in writing.

The duty to keep patient information private and share it only with those involved in care or as legally required, respecting the patient's right to control personal health data.

The principles guiding nursing conduct, including autonomy, beneficence, non-maleficence, justice, veracity, and fidelity, applied when resolving dilemmas in clinical practice.

Essential, accessible, community-based care built on principles of equity, community participation, prevention, and appropriate technology, delivered as close to people's homes as possible.

Government-run schemes such as immunisation, tuberculosis control, maternal and child health, and non-communicable disease screening, delivered through frontline health workers and public facilities.

The unbroken series of refrigerated storage and transport steps that keeps vaccines within their required temperature range from manufacture to administration, preserving potency.

A public schedule of free vaccines given at defined ages to prevent diseases such as tuberculosis, polio, diphtheria, pertussis, tetanus, measles, hepatitis B, and others as nationally recommended.

A systematic, cyclic method of nursing care comprising assessment, diagnosis, planning, implementation, and evaluation, providing individualised and documented care.

A clinical judgement about a patient's actual or potential health problem that nurses are licensed to treat, stated in a standard format with related factors and defining characteristics.

A written document listing patient problems, expected outcomes, planned nursing interventions, and evaluation criteria, guiding and recording individualised nursing care.

Practices that keep pathogens away from a site. Medical asepsis reduces organism spread through cleanliness, while surgical asepsis keeps objects and areas sterile during invasive procedures.

Complete destruction or removal of all microorganisms including spores, achieved by autoclaving, dry heat, ethylene oxide, or radiation, and required for surgical instruments and implants.

Deliberate placement of a patient in a body alignment such as supine, lateral, Fowler, or prone to maintain airway, relieve pressure, promote drainage, or aid breathing.

Localised skin and tissue damage caused by sustained pressure, shear, or friction, usually over bony prominences, staged by depth and tissue loss and prevented by repositioning and support surfaces.

A validated scoring tool that rates risk of pressure injury using six items: sensory perception, moisture, activity, mobility, nutrition, and friction or shear. Lower scores indicate higher risk.

Planned active or passive movement of each joint through its normal arc to preserve flexibility, muscle tone, and circulation, especially in immobile or bedbound patients.

A record of all fluid taken in and lost over 24 hours, including oral intake, intravenous fluids, urine, vomit, and drainage, used to detect dehydration or overload.

Systematic measurement and comparison of fluids entering and leaving the body, with hourly or shift totals, to guide replacement therapy and detect renal or cardiac problems.

Administration of fluids, electrolytes, drugs, or blood products directly into a vein through a cannula or catheter, requiring aseptic technique, rate control, and site monitoring.

Working out the volume or number of tablets to give from a prescribed dose and the stock strength, commonly using the formula dose required divided by stock strength multiplied by stock volume.

A safety checklist confirming the right patient, right drug, right dose, right route, and right time before administration, often extended to include documentation and reason.

Emergency life support combining chest compressions and rescue breaths, with early defibrillation and drugs, to restore circulation and breathing after cardiac arrest.

Techniques to keep the airway open and oxygenated, including head-tilt chin-lift, suctioning, oropharyngeal or nasopharyngeal airways, bag-mask ventilation, and advanced devices.

Delivery of supplemental oxygen by nasal cannula, mask, or higher-flow device to correct hypoxaemia, with prescribed flow, humidification where needed, and monitoring for response and complications.

Monitoring and support after surgery, covering airway, pain, wound, drains, fluids, early mobilisation, and detection of complications such as haemorrhage, infection, or deep vein thrombosis.

Cleaning, assessing, and dressing a wound using aseptic technique, choosing dressings that match exudate and tissue type, and recording size, appearance, and healing progress.

Measures to prevent clot formation in leg veins, including early ambulation, compression stockings, intermittent pneumatic compression, adequate hydration, and prescribed anticoagulants.

A graphic labour record plotting cervical dilatation, fetal head descent, contractions, and maternal and fetal observations against time to detect slow progress and guide referral.

Scheduled health visits during pregnancy for risk assessment, blood and urine tests, blood pressure and weight checks, fetal monitoring, immunisation, and health education.

A bundle of steps to prevent postpartum haemorrhage: a prophylactic uterotonic drug, controlled cord traction, and uterine massage, with timely assessment of blood loss.

Excessive bleeding after childbirth, commonly defined as blood loss of 500 mL or more after vaginal birth or 1000 mL after caesarean, and a leading cause of maternal death.

Feeding an infant only breast milk, with no other food or drink except prescribed vitamins or medicines, for the first six months of life before complementary foods are introduced.

A standard chart plotting weight, length or height, and head circumference against age, used to detect faltering growth, undernutrition, or overweight in children.

Treatment of dehydration with measured oral rehydration salts solution given in small frequent sips, with zinc in diarrhoea, and continued feeding to shorten illness.