Intensive & critical care nursing : the official journal of the British Association of Critical Care Nurses
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Intensive Crit Care Nurs · Oct 2007
The relationship between moral distress and perception of futile care in the critical care unit.
Study the relationship between moral distress (MD) and futile care in the critical care unit (CCU). ⋯ MD associated with clinical situations representing futile care increased with time in CCU. Future interventions are required to minimize the exposure to futile care situations and develop mechanisms to mitigate the effects of MD in the CCU.
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Intensive Crit Care Nurs · Oct 2007
Fever and standard monitoring parameters of ICU patients: a descriptive study.
To investigate the effect of fever episodes and fever characteristics on heart rate, arterial blood pressure and arterial oxygen saturation of intensive care unit (ICU) patients. ⋯ The present findings confirmed the effect of fever episodes on standard monitoring parameters of ICU patients. However, alterations of these parameters, although statistically significant, were not clinically important and cannot guide antipyretic treatment.
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Intensive Crit Care Nurs · Oct 2007
The use of a daily goals sheet to improve communication in the paediatric intensive care unit.
To assess the impact of the implementation of a daily goals sheet upon nursing perception of communication in an academic, tertiary care paediatric intensive care unit (PICU). ⋯ The institution of a daily goals sheet led to an improvement in nursing perception of communication. Future studies are required to determine if this change in process has a demonstrable effect on health care outcomes of critically ill children, or whether this tool can have the same beneficial effects in other academic and non-academic PICUs.
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Intensive Crit Care Nurs · Oct 2007
Management of pain in cardiac surgery ICU patients: have we improved over time?
This study described the pain experience of cardiac surgery ICU patients. After their transfer to the surgical unit, 93 patients were interviewed using a questionnaire about their pain experience while they were in the ICU. Sixty-one patients (65.6%) recalled being ventilated and 72 patients (77.4%) recalled having pain. ⋯ Pain experiences of intensive care unit patients. Heart Lung 1990;19:526-33]. Evidence from research about clinical guidelines for pain management needs to be applied to the care of cardiac surgery patients in order to reduce patient suffering.
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Intensive Crit Care Nurs · Aug 2007
The meaning of technology in an intensive care unit--an interview study.
Previous research has suggested technology may dehumanise patient care and also that technology may restrict nurses' freedom of action. This raises questions about the relationship between technology, care and medicine in units where the patient's need for treatment is often an emergency. ⋯ Contrary to previous findings this study shows that technology seems to be embedded in care and medical treatment. Furthermore, the meaning of technology appears to be dependent on the different staff members' accounting practices.