Patient Positioning Nursing Care | Nursing Fundamentals Next Generation NCLEX Review

Key Steps — Patient positioning — the core positions

RegisteredNurseRN's positioning reference lecture. The checklist names each position it teaches and how it is set up.

1. Start with the goal: the right position supports breathing, circulation, comfort and skin protection — choose it for the patient's condition and the care being given.
2. Supine: flat on the back, head and shoulders supported by a pillow and arms resting supported — the baseline position for rest and many assessments.
3. Fowler's positions: sitting up in bed — semi-Fowler's at a lower head-of-bed angle, high Fowler's near upright — to ease breathing and for eating and conversation; bend the knees slightly to stop the patient sliding down.
4. Lateral (side-lying): the patient on their side with pillows behind the back, between the knees and under the top arm — a mainstay for pressure relief and rest.
5. Sims' (semi-prone): a three-quarter turn toward prone with the top leg flexed forward — used for comfort, drainage and some examinations and procedures.
6. Prone: face down with the head turned to one side and the body supported with pillows — used deliberately in specific care plans, with close monitoring.
7. Dorsal recumbent: on the back with knees bent and feet flat — the working position for many bedside procedures.
8. Whichever position you choose: keep the body in good alignment, pad bony prominences, and check the skin at pressure points before you leave.
9. Reposition on the schedule set by the patient's risk assessment, and document every position change.

Steps summarise this demonstration for education. Always follow your institution's protocol. More Patient Care & Mobility skills →