Aust Crit Care
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Review
The intra-aortic balloon pump in heart failure management: implications for nursing practice.
Management of acute heart failure is an important consideration in critical care. Mechanical support of the failing heart is crucial for improving health outcomes. The most common Australasian application of intra-aortic balloon counterpulsation (IABP) is in the setting of cardiogenic shock. ⋯ This underscores the importance of proficiency in managing the patient receiving IABP support. Nurses play a crucial role in caring for patients with acute heart failure. This paper summarises care considerations for management of the IABP.
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Editorial Review Meta Analysis
Oral decontamination for ventilator-associated pneumonia prevention.
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It is everyday news that we need more intensive care unit (ICU) beds, thus effective use of existing resources is imperative. The aim of this literature review was to critically analyse current literature on how organizational factors, individual factors and teamwork factors influence the ICU discharge process. A better understanding of discharge practices has the potential to ultimately influence ICU resource availability. ⋯ Intensive care patient discharge is influenced by organisational factors, individual factors and teamwork factors. Organisational interventions are effective in reducing ICU discharge delay and shortening patient hospital stay. More rigorous research is needed to discover how these factors influence the ICU discharge process.
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As technological developments continue to offer patients more health care choices patient acuity increases. Patients that traditionally would have been cared for in a critical care environment are increasingly located on general wards. This change impacts on the acute care sector in a number of ways. ⋯ This paper analyses the literature on the factors that contribute to suboptimal ward care of the acutely ill patient. It uses the categories proposed by McQuillan et al. (1998) in relation to suboptimal ward care in an attempt to develop a conceptual analysis of the factors that influence suboptimal ward care and acutely ill ward patients. Thus it aims to develop and enhance practitioners' knowledge and understanding of this topic and therefore improve patient care outcomes.