American journal of critical care : an official publication, American Association of Critical-Care Nurses
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Effective provider-parent relationships are essential during critical illness when treatment decisions are complex, the environment is crowded and unfamiliar, and outcomes are uncertain. ⋯ Real-time videoconferencing via Skype or FaceTime is feasible for providing updates for parents when they cannot be present in the NICU and can be used to include parents in bedside rounds. Videoconferencing updates may improve relationships between parents and the health care team.
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No validated conceptual framework exists for understanding the outcomes of patient- and family-centered care in critical care. ⋯ Intensive care unit patients and their families define intensive care unit by using words to describe sickness, caring, medical staff, emotional states, and physical qualities of the unit. The results validate the importance of these topics among patients and their families in the intensive care unit and illustrate the usefulness of freelisting in critical care research.
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The occiput is a common location for development of pressure ulcers in hospitalized infants and young children. However, risk factors associated with occurrence of the ulcers have not been fully described. ⋯ Infants and children at risk for occipital pressure ulcers can be prospectively identified, allowing implementation of nursing interventions to prevent these ulcers.
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Comparative Study
Pressure Ulcer Incidence in Patients Wearing Nasal-Oral Versus Full-Face Noninvasive Ventilation Masks.
Device-related pressure ulcers from noninvasive ventilation masks alter skin integrity and cause patients discomfort. ⋯ The full-face mask resulted in significantly fewer pressure ulcers and was more comfortable for patients. The full-face mask is a reasonable alternative to traditional nasal-oral masks for patients receiving noninvasive ventilation.