Medical Assistant Prep / Unit 23 MAS 569 review, 2 to 3 minutes
A Tracing Full of Fuzz
The idea
This case is constructed for this course. It shows a medical assistant troubleshooting a noisy tracing step by step instead of passing it on.
In practice
The first printout for an older man is covered in fine, choppy fuzz. The machine's automatic statement suggests an abnormal rhythm. The medical assistant does not take the statement at face value. She looks at the patient first. He is chatting with her, with his arms tense as he grips the table edge, and the exam room is cold. She also notices that the machine's power cord is draped across the lead wires near his feet. She works through the causes in order. She checks each electrode and presses down one that is lifting at the edge. She gives him a warm blanket and asks him to rest his arms at his sides, supported on the table. She moves the power cord away from the cables. She asks him to stop talking and lie still for a few seconds, then records again. The second tracing has a flat, clean baseline, and the machine's statement no longer mentions an abnormal rhythm. She gives the provider the clean tracing, mentions that the first attempt was full of artifact, and explains what she changed.
Where people slip
Handing over the first tracing would have shown the provider a rhythm problem that did not exist, and the machine's printed statement would have made it look official. Fixing the cause, and saying what she had done, gave the provider a tracing that could be trusted and the context to judge it. Looking at the patient before looking at the printout is the habit that made the difference.
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