Professional nurse (London, England)
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A structured system of incident reporting in the NHS can help prevent mistakes.
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Intramuscular codeine is the most regularly prescribed analgesia for post-surgery craniotomy patients. Morphine is avoided for this patient group because of fears of side-effects. A literature search found evidence that titrated morphine has no inherent risks if patients are well observed.
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Undetected fluid overload can cause serious complications, such as circulatory failure and/or cardiogenic shock. Rather than relying on a single test, a combination of procedures and observations should be used to identify the problem. Early intervention is vital to prevent distress, pain and long hospital stays.
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Having a sense of control despite experiencing chronic pain has a positive effect on patients' coping abilities. Investigating patients' perception of the control they have over pain may be possible by using a visual analogue scale.