Skills Hub
patient-prep-vitals
Respiration Measurement
Always tested on the CCMA
Count the respiratory rate without the patient's awareness.
About this skill
Observe chest rise and fall for one full inspiration-expiration cycle, count for 30 or 60 seconds, and note rate, rhythm, depth, and quality.
7 total steps
2 critical steps
Time limit: 2 min
What graders are watching for
- 1Keep your fingers on the wrist (pretending to count pulse)
- 2Count one full cycle = one inspiration + one expiration
- 3Normal adult rate is 12 to 20 breaths per minute
Common mistakes (and how to avoid them)
- !Telling the patient you are counting respirations
- !Reporting only the rate
- !Missing shallow breathing because the chest barely moves
Practice this skill step-by-step
The static walkthrough above is the marketing overview. The full step-by-step interactive practice (with critical-step highlighting, per-step "why this matters" rationale, and what graders watch for on each individual step) is unlocked with a subscription.