Math might not be the first skill that comes to mind when you think about a nursing career. Math is a vital part of nursing and is used in a variety of ways throughout the average day. Nurses must obtain reliable data and calculations to prevent, diagnose and treat medical problems. A clear understanding of fractions, ratios and algebraic equations and the metric system is essential to keeping patients healthy and alive.
Vital signs -- temperature, pulse rate, breathing rate and blood pressure -- serve as our bodies’ dashboard indicators. Nurses must use math when they check a person’s vital signs. One important vital sign is body temperature. The normal body temperature for a person is about 98.6 degrees. A high temperature tells a …show more content…
These problems are solved using formulas that involve division and rounding numbers. Nurses must know the correct IV formula to use for the problem and plug in the information that is known to get an answer.
Certain drugs are titrated, meaning that the dose varies according to parameters set by the physician. In an intensive-care unit, a patient may need a changing amount of intravenous drug. Insulin may be titrated depending on the patient's ever-changing blood-glucose reading.
Math is critical to helping anesthesiologists concoct safe solutions and the right levels of oxygen for surgical patients. Nurse Anesthetists consider variables such as patients’ weight, the desired drug or solution dosages and the amount of dilution needed so that the active chemical is not too strong. A successful Nurse Anesthetists practice requires expertise of converting to metric units.
Health data analysts collect and crunch numbers to help medical facilities better serve patients. The data may include wait, service or recovery times and instances of multiple appointments and visits for the same or similar conditions. From the figures and mathematical models, analysts, administrators and physicians may implement time-saving and more efficient techniques and scheduling. Statistical models help analysts identify the factors that determine the length of recovery time and success of recovery periods from