Critical care nurse
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Critical care nurse · Jun 2023
ReviewMonitoring and Management of Intra-abdominal Pressure in Critically Ill Children.
Intra-abdominal hypertension is a comorbid condition in critically ill children, is an independent predictor of mortality, and has harmful effects on multiple organ systems through renal, pulmonary or hemodynamic damage. Intra-abdominal pressure monitoring is widely used in clinical practice because it is a safe, accurate, inexpensive, and rapid method for the clinical diagnosis of intra-abdominal hypertension. ⋯ Knowledge of intra-abdominal pressure monitoring in critically ill children enhances the ability of nurses in clinical practice to accurately measure intra-abdominal pressure to improve the timeliness and accuracy of clinical identification of intra-abdominal hypertension and guide decompression interventions.
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Critical care nurse · Apr 2022
Using a Standardized Rounding Tool to Improve the Incidence of Spontaneous Awakening and Breathing Trials.
Spontaneous awakening and breathing trials have been associated with shorter durations of mechanical ventilation and intensive care unit lengths of stay. ⋯ An evidence-based approach to weaning from mechanical ventilation and standardized rounding may be a cost-effective way to reduce mechanical ventilation duration and length of stay in a medical intensive care unit.
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Critical care nurse · Jun 2020
ReviewExtracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation as a Bridge to Lung Transplant: Considerations for Critical Care Nursing Practice.
Candidates waiting for lung transplant are sicker now than ever before. Extracorporeal membrane oxygenation has become useful as a bridge to lung transplant for these critically ill patients. ⋯ This review describes the types of extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (venovenous and venoarterial), provides an overview of the indications and contraindications for extracorporeal membrane oxygenation, and discusses the role of clinical bedside nurses in the treatment of patients requiring extracorporeal membrane oxygenation as a bridge to lung transplant.
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Despite vast evidence describing risk factors associated with falls and fall prevention strategies, falls continue to present challenges in acute care settings. ⋯ Nurses and patients agreed on the causes of assisted falls but disagreed on the causes of unassisted falls. Nurses frequently said that the use of a bed alarm could have prevented the fall.