Critical care nurse
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Critical care nurse · Feb 2017
ReviewRole of Transitional Care Measures in the Prevention of Readmission After Critical Illness.
Transitioning from the critical care unit to the medical-surgical care area is vital to patients' recovery and resolution of critical illness. Such transitions are necessary to optimize use of available hospital resources to meet patient care needs. ⋯ Patients with complex illness, multiple comorbid conditions, and a prolonged initial stay in the critical care unit are at an increased risk of being readmitted to the critical care unit and experiencing poor outcomes. Implementing nurse-driven measures that support continuity of care and consistent communication practices such as critical care outreach services, transitional communication tools, discharge planning, and transitional care units improves transitions of patients from the critical care environment and reduces readmission rates.
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Serotonin syndrome is a potentially fatal condition caused by drugs that affect serotonin metabolism or act as serotonin receptor agonists. Monoamine oxidase inhibitors, selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors, and serotonin-norepinephrine reuptake inhibitors are the medications most commonly associated with serotonin syndrome. Serotonin syndrome can be mild and of short duration, but a prolonged course, life-threatening complications, and death are possible. ⋯ The treatment is symptomatic and supportive. Antidotal therapies are available, but the evidence for their effectiveness is limited. If serotonin syndrome is promptly identified and aggressively treated, the patient should fully recover.
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Critical care nurse · Feb 2017
Comparative Study Observational StudyDelirium in Trauma Patients: Prevalence and Predictors.
Delirium is associated with increased mortality, morbidity, hospital costs, and postdischarge cognitive dysfunction. Most research focuses on nontrauma patients receiving mechanical ventilation in the intensive care unit. ⋯ Patients in both the intermediate and intensive care units, whether mechanical ventilation was used or not, were positive for delirium. Delirium prevention protocols may benefit trauma patients regardless of their inpatient location.
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Critical care nurse · Feb 2017
Blogging as an Innovative Method of Peer-to-Peer Educational Sharing.
Nurses in the cardiac intensive care unit often attend professional education opportunities. However, it is difficult to share this information among nursing staff. Varying schedules, different shifts, and patient acuity limit the amount of time available for peer-to-peer sharing of educational information. A review of the literature revealed scant research on blogging for peer-to-peer education in general and particularly in nursing. ⋯ The survey results suggest that blogging may be an effective method of peer-to-peer sharing of education, although more rigorous research is required in this area.