Dimensions of critical care nursing : DCCN
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Families of patients unexpectedly brought to the emergency department or transferred to the intensive care unit are families in crisis. In the greater scheme of things, they may not be a priority. This article discusses a program in which family advocates care for families just as nurses and physicians care for the critically ill patient.
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Dimens Crit Care Nurs · Nov 2000
ReviewNoninvasive positive-pressure ventilation: averting intubation of the heart failure patient.
Mechanically ventilating patients with heart failure who have respiratory distress can increase hospital costs, complications, and mortality. A few studies have evaluated the use of noninvasive positive-pressure ventilation (NPPV) as an alternative treatment for these patients. This article describes NPPV and reviews its use in managing an acute exacerbation of heart failure.
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Learn how neuromuscular blocking agents work and how to assess and manage a patient receiving these drugs.
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Stretching scarce resources is more than a managerial issue. Should an understaffed ICU accept the patient or divert him to another facility? The intense "medical utility" controversy focuses on a situation that critical care nurses now face every day.
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Pulmonary artery catheters pose significant risks for patients. This article describes how nurses can use their detective skills in concert with--or instead of--a pulmonary artery catheter.