Sanitary Orderly

SANITARY ORDERLY (sanitar, sanitarka), a member of the junior medical staff who serves in medical-sanitary institutions and military units. In civilian medical-sanitary institutions, sanitary orderlies are used primarily to perform various types of work that do not require special medical knowledge related to patient care: carrying and transporting patients and heavy objects, cleaning premises, maintaining cleanliness, preparing baths, distributing food, and performing minor care functions—airing rooms and making beds, changing linens, preparing hot water bottles, repositioning patients, placing bedpans, urinals, etc. In civilian medical institutions, the terms "nurse's aide" (sidelka), "nanny" (nyanya), or "attendant" (sluzhitelnitsa) are used instead of the term "sanitary orderly" (sanitarka). Usually, hospitals organize short-term courses to teach sanitary orderlies the basic elements of hygiene and the simplest care techniques. In psychiatric medical institutions, in addition to the aforementioned duties, sanitary orderlies are assigned functions related to supervising the behavior of patients under the direct guidance of physicians and intermediate medical staff. The duties of sanitary orderlies are regulated by internal regulations. The number of sanitary orderlies is determined by staffing tables. In military-sanitary institutions, sanitary orderlies, under the guidance of intermediate medical staff, perform simple and non-critical care functions for patients of the nature described above. Sanitary orderlies are recruited from non-combat personnel and civilian hires. Their training is conducted in hospitals through appropriate short-term courses. The number of sanitary orderlies in hospitals of various categories is determined by hospital staffing tables approved by the Military-Sanitary Directorate. Sanitary orderlies in military units perform duties related to providing first aid, carrying and transporting those injured in battle, and caring for those injured in battle and patients at forward stages of sanitary evacuation; they also conduct elementary sanitary-prophylactic work within a company. Sanitary squads of rifle companies are staffed by sanitary orderlies who have completed special courses as part of extra-military training on the basis established by the law on compulsory military service and within the timeframes established by the headquarters of the Red Army. Extra-military training for sanitary orderlies is carried out mostly by organizations of the Russian Red Cross Society. The training program, calculated for 180 hours, provides for 56 hours of military training, 24 hours of political training, and 100 hours of special training, of which 15 hours are for familiarization with the general foundations of the structure and life of the human body, 50 hours for teaching the organization and provision of first aid in battle, 20 hours for studying the foundations of military hygiene and sanitation, and 15 hours for mastering the elements of patient care. Special attention is paid to practical exercises on applying bandages and splints, stopping bleeding, acquiring basic skills in providing first aid in combat conditions, performing artificial respiration, and methods of carrying and transporting patients and the wounded. Teaching the basics of patient care, including care for those affected by poisonous substances, aims to familiarize future sanitary orderlies with techniques for repositioning patients, changing linens, providing food and drink, and methods of preparing and cleaning premises for forward stages of sanitary evacuation. Familiarization with measures of personal prophylaxis, elementary practical information on disinfection and disinfestation, and the foundations of sanitary processing is also a mandatory part of the specially developed standard programs for extra-military training of sanitary orderlies. The duties of sanitary orderlies regarding the provision of first aid are regulated by the "Manual for Sanitary Orderlies on Providing First Aid, and on Carrying and Transporting Those Injured in Battle," published by the Military-Sanitary Directorate.