Critical care nurse
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Critical care nurse · Feb 2024
Deimplementation of Gastric Residual Volume Monitoring to Enhance Patient Nutrition.
Routine gastric residual volume monitoring remains common in nursing practice. However, current evidence supports using a focused nursing assessment to identify signs and symptoms of enteral feeding intolerance such as abdominal pain, abdominal distension, and vomiting. ⋯ The deimplementation of routine gastric residual volume monitoring is supported by evidence. Use of a focused gastrointestinal nursing assessment to identify enteral feeding intolerance is safe, feasible, and effective and improves nutrition delivery and nurses' workflow.
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Critical care nurse · Jun 2020
Authorized Agent-Controlled Analgesia for Pain Management in Critically Ill Adult Patients.
Patient-controlled analgesia is commonly used for adult patients requiring parenteral opioid analgesia in the postoperative setting. However, many patients are unable to use patient-controlled analgesia because of physical or cognitive limitations. Authorized agent-controlled analgesia, in which a nurse or family member activates the patient-controlled analgesia device, has been studied in the pediatric population but has received little attention in adults. ⋯ Use of authorized agent-controlled analgesia is associated with a reduction in pain in critically ill patients. Larger studies are warranted to confirm these findings.
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Critical care nurse · Apr 2023
ReviewImpact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Nurses Working in Intensive Care Units: A Scoping Review.
The COVID-19 pandemic resulted in significant system strain, requiring rapid redeployment of nurses to intensive care units. Little is known about the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and surge models on nurses. ⋯ Nurses working in intensive care units during the COVID-19 pandemic experienced adverse psychological outcomes, with unique stressors and challenges observed among both permanent intensive care unit and redeployed nurses. Further research is required to understand the impact of these outcomes over the full duration of the pandemic, among at-risk groups, and within the context of redeployment roles.
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Critical care nurse · Jun 2020
Aligning Organizational Culture and Infrastructure to Support Evidence-Based Practice.
Standardized nursing practice based on the foundations of evidence-based practice leads to high-quality patient care and optimal outcomes. Despite knowing the benefits of evidence-based practice, health care organizations do not consistently make it the standard of care; thus, implementation of evidence-based practice at the system level continues to be challenging. This article describes the process adopted by a facility in the Southwest that took on the challenge of changing the organizational culture to incorporate evidence-based practice. ⋯ The lack of standardized practice was addressed by developing a group of stakeholders including organizational leaders, clinical experts, and bedside providers. Changing the culture required a comprehensive process of document selection and development, education, and outcome evaluation. The ultimate aim was to implement an integrated system to develop practices and documents based on the best evidence to support patient outcomes.
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Critical care nurse · Oct 2023
Implementing Brief Mindfulness-Based Interventions to Reduce Compassion Fatigue.
Nurses in surgical-trauma units are susceptible to compassion fatigue due to work-related stressors. Mitigating and preventing compassion fatigue are critical to supporting the health and well-being of surgical-trauma nurses. ⋯ Brief mindfulness-based interventions can improve nurses' compassion satisfaction while reducing compassion fatigue measurements.