Reading Skills for Healthcare Workers

Calvin is a nursing assistant at Springview Assisted Living Facility. He is checking on one of the residents named Mr. Evanson. After Calvin knocks, he enters and greets Mr. Evanson. Mr. Evanson is sitting in his chair, reading a magazine.

​

“Calvin, my lamp isn’t working today,” he says. “Can you get it fixed, please?”

​

Calvin looks at the lamp on the nightstand, removes the light bulb, and shakes the bulb. The bulb has burnt out and needs to be thrown away. “I’ll ask Phil to change the light bulb in it.” Phil is the manager of the maintenance department. He makes sure that his team completes all of the repairs necessary to keep the residents safe and happy.

​

“Thank you,” Mr. Evanson says. “Also, my toilet seat slipped last night. It must be broken. Can you take a look at it?”

​

Calvin answers, “I’ll look at it right away.” Calvin checks the toilet seat and notices that a hinge is loose. A loose hinge can be dangerous because it can cause a resident to slip off the toilet and become injured. “I’ll ask Phil to fix that today.”

​

“Could you also have him repair the bottom shelf in my closet? It is wobbly,” Mr. Evanson says.

​

“Yes, I will write up a maintenance request this morning.”

​

On the maintenance request, Calvin writes the items in Mr. Evanson’s room that are in need of repair. He writes, The light bulb in the lamp needs to be replaced, The toilet seat needs to be fixed or replaced, and Please repair the bottom shelf in the closet (wobbly).

​

Phil will change the light bulb this afternoon. He will check the toilet seat. Maybe he will repair it, or maybe he will need to replace it with a new one. Phil will adjust the shelf in the closet with his tools. Phil is glad that Calvin always writes clear instructions on his maintenance requests.