Nursing in critical care
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Nursing in critical care · Nov 2005
Optimizing the fluid management of ventilated patients with suspected hypovolaemia.
Fluid management is a vital component of patient care within the critical care setting; it has a range of indications and applications, one of the most important being to maintain tissue perfusion and safeguard against single/multiple organ failure. Hypovolaemia is a commonly encountered condition within critical care and has the potential to jeopardize tissue perfusion and accelerate the risk of organ failure. In an attempt to optimize the fluid management of patients within the intensive therapy unit, this article outlines the development and implementation of a fluid prescription for ventilated patients with suspected hypovolaemia.