Is This Patient With Heart Failure A Candidate For Ultrafiltration?
Nursing2012, June 2012Ultrafiltration is a type of renal replacement therapy that may be indicated for patients with heart failure who have significant volume overload despite outpatient diuretic therapy. This article discusses nursing responsibilities for patients who are candidates for this intervention.
Acute Kidney Injury and the Critically Ill Patient
Dimensions of Critical Care Nursing, May/June 2012Persistent acute kidney injury (AKI) can lead to the subsequent development of renal failure. This article explores the clinical implications of AKI for the critically ill patient and how this can have a profound influence on the principal presenting disease and expected outcome.
Ethics in Critical Care: Preventive Ethics in the Intensive Care Unit
AACN Advanced Critical Care, April/June 2012The goals of preventive ethics are to use a proactive approach to identify common triggers of ethical conflict and to address these triggers before they contribute to conflict. This article uses a case-based approach to introduce a process for preventive ethics in the intensive care unit and highlights the importance of the role of critical care nurses in this process.
Ask An Expert: Let Them In: ICU Visitation
Nursing Made Incredibly Easy!, July/August 2012In November 2011, the American Association of Critical-Care Nurses released a practice alert addressing the importance of a support person's unrestricted visitation in the adult ICU. Evidence shows that the presence of a support person decreases fear and anxiety in patients, lessens confusion and agitation, and can even decrease cardiovascular complications.
Rehabilitation Starts in the Intensive Care Unit
Critical Care Nursing Quarterly, July/September 2012Because of many factors such as hemodynamic instability, pulmonary complications, and risk of infection, patients with cervical spinal cord injuries can spend up to 2 or more weeks in the ICU before they transfer to a rehabilitation unit. To achieve optimal outcomes, it is imperative that members of the interdisciplinary team work together in a consistent, goal-oriented, collaborative manner.