Keep an eye on

How it is used

Very common in handover and between colleagues: 'Keep an eye on his blood pressure', 'Can you keep an eye on my patients while I'm on my break?' It is informal; in the notes nurses write 'monitor' or 'observe closely' instead.

Example sentences

1. Keep an eye on her drain; it was filling quite fast this morning.

2. Can you keep an eye on bay B while I go to pharmacy?

Common collocations

• keep an eye on a patient
• keep a close eye on
• keep an eye on the drip

Related terms

• observationsIn nursing, the regular set of measurements taken from a patient, mainly the vital signs, and sometimes other checks such as pain or level of consciousness.
• check onTo go and see someone, or look at something, to make sure they are all right or that nothing has changed.
• deteriorateTo become worse, especially when a patient's condition or vital signs change in a way that shows they are becoming more unwell.
• handoverThe passing of information and responsibility for patients from one nurse or team to the next, usually at the change of shift.

More terms: Patient Assessment

• assessment
• pain score
• medical history
• throw up
• level of consciousness
• baseline
• alert and oriented