Critical care nurse
-
Critical care nurse · Apr 2017
Interstage Home Monitoring After Newborn First-Stage Palliation for Hypoplastic Left Heart Syndrome: Family Education Strategies.
Children born with hypoplastic left heart syndrome are at high risk for serious morbidity, growth failure, and mortality during the interstage period, which is the time from discharge home after first-stage hypoplastic left heart syndrome palliation until the second-stage surgical intervention. The single-ventricle circulatory physiology is complex, fragile, and potentially unstable. ⋯ Beginning with admission to the intensive care unit of the newborn with hypoplastic left heart syndrome, nurses provide critical care and education to prepare the family for interstage home care. This article presents detailed nursing guidelines for educating families on the home care of their medically fragile infant with single-ventricle circulation.
-
Critical care nurse · Apr 2017
Comparative StudyComplications of Peripheral Venous Access Devices: Prevention, Detection, and Recovery Strategies.
Most hospitalized patients have placement of a peripheral venous access device, either a short peripheral catheter or a peripherally inserted central catheter. Compared with central venous catheters that are not peripherally inserted, the other 2 types are generally perceived by health care providers as safer and less complicated to manage, and less emphasis is placed on the prevention and management of complications. ⋯ Complications associated with short peripheral catheters and peripherally inserted central catheters include tourniquet retention, tubing and catheter misconnections, phlebitis, air embolism, device fragment embolization, and inadvertent discharge with a retained peripheral venous access device. Integration of prevention, detection, and recovery strategies into personal nursing practice promotes the quality and safety of health care delivery.