Articles: intensive-care-units.
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To evaluate the long-term mortality and morbidity of critically ill elderly patients requiring intensive care. ⋯ Age alone is not an adequate predictor of long-term survival and quality of life in critically ill elderly patients.
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Gaoxiong Yi Xue Ke Xue Za Zhi · Jun 1993
[Staffing levels and patient needs in the intensive care unit].
The current study sought to utilize a patient classification system to investigate staffing and patient needs along with nursing care distribution in our intensive care units. The study employed a factor type analysis to design a patient need checklist (for our six ICUs) in order to determine staff load and nursing requirements. Snapshot observations were also taken to survey the distribution of nursing care time. ⋯ The understaffed units are all surgical units; the overstaffed ones, internal medicine units. To conclude the study, we examined the nature and complexity of nursing duties in the hopes of returning non-nursing responsibilities to the proper medical organizations. Our ultimate goal is to realize the full potential and improve the quality of our nursing personnel.
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Crit Care Nurs Clin North Am · Jun 1993
Provision of pharmaceutical care in the intensive care unit.
The highly specialized knowledge and skills necessary to care for critically ill patients requires a team approach involving physicians, nurses, pharmacists, and other health care providers. The role of the pharmacist in the intensive care unit is evolving rapidly to a new responsibility for ensuring definite drug therapy outcomes that improve the patient's quality of life. The provision of pharmaceutical care by pharmacists involves identifying, resolving, and preventing drug-related problems. Many medication errors, adverse drug reactions, drug interactions, and inappropriate therapies can be avoided, which will certainly benefit the patient as well as the nursing professions.
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Marketing theory is used to explain how Pharmacy Department managers at a Vancouver-area hospital secured a new ICU pharmacist position in a period of severe fiscal constraint. Market segmentation, target marketing and pull marketing strategy were combined to obtain support for the new position. Improved drug information services for ICU nurses were promoted to Nursing Administration and enhanced pharmacotherapy monitoring was promoted to the two critical care physicians primarily responsible for patient care in the ICU. ⋯ P. of Nursing (the functional officer for Pharmacy), who then promoted the new position to Hospital Administration. A half-time DUR commitment by the ICU pharmacist was offered to Hospital Administration, expanding this already successful service and guaranteeing cost recovery for the new position. Hospital Administration approved the new ICU clinical pharmacist position in a budget which saw other hospital departments lose several positions.
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Beside the procedures to ensure adequate ventilatory and circulatory support, analgesia, sedation and even anesthesia are essential parts of the preclinical treatment of patients with multiple injuries. The measures for extrication and positioning must be adjusted to minimize pain and excitation. ⋯ The therapy must take into account the special conditions concerning the patient, material and assisting personnel by choosing suitable techniques. The best results can be obtained if all kinds of measures can be administered from the site of the accident on up to the definitive care in the operating room.