Designed for advanced practice nursing students and novice clinicians, Advanced Health Assessment & Clinical Diagnosis in Primary Care, 3rd Edition is a practical resource that takes the readers to the "next step" of health assessment, beyond basic history and physical examination and into the diagnostic reasoning process. Accessible and concise, it focuses on the physical examination centering on a specific chief complaint rather than a diagnosis of a disease entity. Each chapter is organized in five major areas: Diagnostic Reasoning: Focused History; Key Questions; Diagnostic Reasoning: Focused Physical Examination; Laboratory and Diagnostic Studies; and Differential Diagnosis. The primary care provider who masters the differential diagnoses in this text will be able to accurately diagnose the majority of patients seen in practice today!
- Emphasizes a symptom- or problem-based approach to diagnosis.
- Focuses on the use of history and physical examination to engage the process of clinical diagnosis.
- Highlights Key Questions to ask the patient, followed by an explanation of what the patient's responses may signify, to guide the practitioner toward an accurate assessment and focus on a precise diagnosis.
- Includes Diagnostic Reasoning: Focused Physical Examination content in each section to instruct the practitioner in what physical examination components to perform, assisting in the diagnostic process.
- Features Laboratory and Diagnostic Studies content in each section to provide an outline of what laboratory or diagnostic tests would be appropriate for the chief complaint and/or suspected diagnosis.
- Differential Diagnosis tables at the end of each chapter provide a comprehensive overview of previously discussed differential diagnosis content, offering the practitioner an at-a-glance summary of possible diagnoses.
- Includes integrated content on children, providing the practitioner with important information on how symptoms and diagnoses can vary in this population group.
- Mood, Behavior Changes, and Psychosocial Concerns chapter considers commonly encountered psychological conditions and psychosocial concerns, and provides an approach to elicit more information, determine suicidal risk, and evaluate for a diagnosable psychological disorder.
- The Chest Film chapter offers a guided approach to reading and interpreting chest x-rays.
