Journal of emergency nursing : JEN : official publication of the Emergency Department Nurses Association
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This study aimed to assess emergency nurses' perceived barriers toward engaging patients in serious illness conversations. ⋯ Emergency nurses may encounter barriers while engaging in serious illness conversations. Institutional-level policies may be required in creating a palliative care-friendly emergency department work environment.
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Family members experience considerable physiological, psychological, and emotional pressure when accompanying a critically ill relative in the emergency department. The culture and context of care influence the needs of the family, and a thorough understanding of these needs by health care professionals is essential to providing patient- and family-centered care. This study aimed to compare nurses' and family members' perceptions of the priorities of family member needs and their satisfaction with meeting those needs in the emergency department. ⋯ The perceived importance of the patient's family's needs differed from the viewpoints of the patient's family members and the nurses. In addition, emergency nurses overestimated the extent to which family members' needs were met compared with family members. To more adequately gauge and meet the needs of family members, nurses need to acquire more knowledge about patient family needs in the emergency department.
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Acute ischemic stroke is a neurologic emergency, requiring rapid recognition and treatment with intravenous thrombolysis. Since the publication of the 2019 American Heart Association/American Stroke Association Guidelines that recommend tenecteplase as an alternative agent, several centers across the United States are transitioning from alteplase to tenecteplase as the agent of choice for thrombolysis in acute ischemic stroke. ⋯ Emergency nurses are vital to the care of acute ischemic stroke patients. There are several pharmacologic and logistical differences between alteplase and tenecteplase for this indication. This paper outlines these key differences.