General Assessment Focused general assessment begins with taking a health history regarding constitutional symptoms. This examination involves a general survey of the patient, measurement of vital signs, and pain assessment.Optimal Patient PositioningExamine the...

Guide to Negative Pressure Wound Therapy (NPWT) Also known as vacuum-assisted wound closure (VAC), NPWT is a dressing system that continuously or intermittently applies negative pressure across the surface of wounds that are acute, chronic, complex, or difficult-to-heal (Gestring, 2022). NPWT...

Heart Failure: Guideline-Directed Management and Therapy Guideline-Directed Management and Therapy (GDMT) was developed by the American College of Cardiology and American Heart Association to define the optimal course of treatment for patients in each stage of heart failure (HF) (Yancy et al., 2013...

Isolation Precautions Isolation precautions create barriers between microbes and patients, staff, and equipment to prevent the spread of infection in the health care setting.

IV Fluids When administering IV fluids, the type and amount of fluid may influence patient outcomes. Make sure to understand the differences between fluid products and their effects.CrystalloidsCrystalloid solutions contain small molecules that flow easily...

Managing Diabetes in the Hospital Setting It is critical for healthcare providers to effectively manage their patients’ diabetes to prevent complications from hypoglycemia and hyperglycemia which can result in increased morbidity, mortality, hospital admissions, and length of stay...

Neurovascular Assessment Neurovascular assessment is performed when there is a suspicion of compromised blood flow or nerve damage, to detect early signs and symptoms of acute ischemia or compartment syndrome. Examples of injuries or procedures that place patients at risk...

Nursing Documentation Nursing documentation is a responsibility that spans all nursing practice levels and across all settings, from nursing assistive personnel, the registered nurse, and the advanced practice nurse. It is a crucial and fundamental skill that is...

Parenteral Nutrition (PN) Parenteral nutrition (PN) is an intravenous form of nutritional supplementation containing dextrose, amino acids, electrolytes, vitamins, minerals, trace elements, and fluids. Lipid emulsion may be infused separately or added to the solution...

Pressure Injury Assessment and Management Approximately 2.5 million pressure-induced injuries are treated each year in acute care facilities in the United States (Berlowitz, 2020b). Hospital-acquired pressure injuries are associated with pain, risk of infection, delayed recovery...

Pulmonary Assessment Focused pulmonary assessment begins with a thorough health history. While doing so, carefully observe for conversational dyspnea and other symptoms. Order of examination is performed as inspection, palpation, percussion, and auscultation.Optimal...

Quick Guide to Laboratory Values Use this convenient cheat-sheet to help you monitor laboratory values related to fluid and electrolyte status, acid-base balance and hematology. Remember, normal value ranges may vary according to techniques used in different laboratories.