Tutor profile: Sarah H.

What law, passed in 1996, protects the privacy of patients and the release of medical records?

The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA). This law is widely referred to in the healthcare community as one of the most important laws in healthcare. Most lawsuits and job terminations can be linked to a healthcare worker violating HIPAA laws.

The nurse is caring for a patient with Meniere's disease. The nurse knows that the most important consideration in regard for patient safety is which of the following: A. Offer the patient alternative meal options from the kitchen. B. Instruct the nursing assistant to walk with the patient when she needs to get out of bed. C. Remind the patient to use hand hygiene, especially after voiding and before meals. D. Raise the side rails on the patient's bed.

Correct Answer: B. The nurse knows that patients with Meniere's disease can have sudden attacks of vertigo so it is important that the nursing assistant help the patient out of bed and while ambulating due to the risk of falls. Raising the side rails of the bed is considered a restraint and should be avoided. Hand hygiene should be taught to all patients, and patients with Meniere's disease do not have specific food restrictions.

Please name the 5 phases of digestion and what these phases consist of.

1. Ingestion: The physical intake of food or nutrition. 2. Digestion: Breakdown of nutrition, chemical and physical. (i.e teeth and digestive acids) 3. Absorption: The absorption of nutrients in the stomach and intestines. 4. Compaction: The removal of water in the intestinal track to form stool. 5. Excretion/Defecation: The removal of food waste from the GI tract after all nutrients have been absorbed.