Teaching patients how to use the diaphragm correctly in breathing exercices

Abstract

Patients sometimes don't know how to use their diaphragm correctly in breathing exercices. The nurse may help by placing her hands around the rib cage while the patient's hands press his abdomen; this care facilitates the learning of the diaphragm's movement and makes it easier for the patient to inhale, using together the thorax and the diaphragm for greater rung expansion.