Early detection of deterioration – TOBS
How you ensure that communication works in a crisis
Many municipalities wish for a higher proportion of skilled workers in the institutions. This is an advantage for you: your education is precisely what is in demand, and it sets you apart from those who start without papers in the trade.
§What is TOBS?
TOBS is a tool for systematic and objective observation of vital values: pulse consciousness level temperature respiration and systolic blood pressure. Municipalities were via health agreements required to implement early detection of beginning illness and systematic registration of observations of resident's everyday. Method is performed by nurses and health assistants
§Change forms and your role
It is often the social and health helper or assistant who first notices small changes in the citizen's everyday life — that someone eats less, or seems more lethargic than normal. Some municipalities work with the connection between TOBS and change forms, which support the frontline staff's clinical assessment. Then a nurse or assistant makes an actual TOBS scoring.
- 01Changed level of consciousness or sudden confusion.
- 02Faster or more strained breathing than normal.
- 03Changed pulse relative to the person's usual level.
- 04Reduced general condition without the user being able to say why.
- 05Sudden loss of function – the citizen cannot do what she could yesterday.
§Why it matters
The Patient Safety Authority has pointed out that it is important to respond early to sudden loss of function or impaired general condition in the elderly. Early detection can help prevent deterioration, illness and reduced functional ability, and when successful, it can help the citizen avoid hospitalization, deterioration and premature death.
§How the mechanic diagnoses a fault systematically
- 01Know the citizen's normal level — the deviation is often more important than the single number.
- 02Measure and note systematically, not just from a gut feeling.
- 03Pass on and escalate according to your workplace's instructions if something is different.
- 04Document both the observation and the action you took.
“It is rarely the big dramatic signs that save lives – it is that someone noticed the small difference from yesterday.”