Stethoscope Use and Operation

1. A stethoscope allows a person to listen to someone’s heartbeat.

2. First use an alcohol swab to clean the earpieces of the stethoscope.

3. Insert the earpieces in your ears.

4. Do not tap or yell into the flat (diaphragm) of the stethoscope because the sound is amplified and could damage the hearing of the person with the earpieces in his or her ears.

5. A person’s heart is slightly to the left of the center of his or her chest. Place the flat end of the stethoscope, called the diaphragm, over your heart or another person’s heart and listen.