Canadian journal of cardiovascular nursing = Journal canadien en soins infirmiers cardio-vasculaires
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Can J Cardiovasc Nurs · Jan 2014
Content validity of the Toronto Pain Management Inventory-Acute Coronary Syndrome Version.
Cardiac pain and/or discomfort arising from acute coronary syndromes (ACS) can often be severe and anxiety-provoking. Cardiac pain, a symptom of impaired myocardial perfusion, if left untreated, may lead to further myocardial hypoxia, which can potentiate myocardial damage. Evidence suggests that once ACS patients are stabilized, their pain may not be adequately assessed. Lack of knowledge and problematic beliefs about pain may contribute to this problem. To date, no standardized tools are available to examine nurses' specific knowledge and beliefs about ACS pain that could inform future educational initiatives. ⋯ Preliminary content validity was established on the TPMI-ACS version. All items retained in the TPMI-ACS version met requirements for content validity. Further evaluation of the psychometric properties of the TPMI-ACS is needed to establish criterion and construct validity, as well as reliability indicators.
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Can J Cardiovasc Nurs · Jan 2013
Caring for patients receiving therapeutic hypothermia post cardiac arrest in the intensive care unit.
Survivors of ventricular fibrillation cardiac arrest have poor and often devastating neurological outcomes despite advances in resuscitation techniques and services (Bernard et al., 2002; Collins & Samworth, 2008). In an effort to increase survival rates, improve neurological outcomes and reduce mortality for surviving patients, clinical trials have shown that a mild state of therapeutic hypothermia (32 degrees C to 34 degrees C) has been linked to improved patient outcomes post cardiac arrest (Koran, 2008; Lee & Asare, 2010). ⋯ Busy nurses need flexibility in the delivery of programs in the clinical setting, and this program was designed to meet that need with a combination of self-paced modules, lectures, discussions and a return demonstration. In this article, the authors discuss the nursing care of post cardiac arrest patients receiving TH, and the design and implementation of the education program.
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Can J Cardiovasc Nurs · Jan 2013
ReviewExposing barriers to end-of-life communication in heart failure: an integrative review.
End-of-life (EOL) communication is lacking despite patients with heart failure (HF) and their caregivers desiring it. ⋯ The challenge of diagnosing and prognosticating HF, its unpredictable trajectory, HCP inexperience in recognizing nearing EOL and lack of communication skills lead to HCPs avoiding EOL conversations. Four categories of barriers to communication were identified: patient/caregiver, HCP, disease-specific and organizational challenges.
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Can J Cardiovasc Nurs · Jan 2012
Developing nursing expertise in caring for older advanced stage heart failure patients and their families--palliative and end-of-life care.
Patients living with chronic heart failure (CHF) often have poor quality of life and similar symptoms as patients with cancer. Despite this, these patients receive less specialist palliative care. Some of the major barriers in providing high-quality care for end stage CHF patients are the conflicting conceptualization of palliative care among health care professionals as a system of care delivery at the terminal phase of the illness versus philosophy of care introduced early in conjunction with life-prolonging treatments, the unpredictable nature of the illness trajectory, lack of knowledge among acute care nurses about palliative care and lack of communication with patients and their families. The aim of this article is to identify evidence-based strategies and frameworks that would aid nurses and other health care professionals in the integration of palliative care into the care path of CHF patients.