Do you have an action plan for what to do when the next patient comes to your ED with respiratory symptoms consistent with severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS)? ED nurses nationwide urgently are developing strategies to prepare for another outbreak.
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Do you consider that abuse or neglect may be occurring when you care for elderly patients in your ED? According to a new report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 33,000 patients older than the age of 60 were treated in EDs over a four-year period for assault-related injuries from elder abuse.
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Here is a sample interview with a possible perpetrator of elder abuse, excerpted from the Elder Abuse Diagnostic and Intervention Protocol at Harborview Medical Center in Seattle:
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A child with a suspicious fracture. An elderly woman who says she hasnt been eating regularly. A drunk driver involved in a fatal motor vehicle accident. Do you know which of these cases you are required to report to agencies or law enforcement?
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When callers ask whether their family member or friend is in your ED, what do you tell them? If youre like most ED nurses, youre confused about exactly what information you can share to avoid violations of patient privacy regulations.
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How would you like to shave thousands of dollars off your ED budget? Develop your own staff-tracking database, recommends Kathy Weil, MS, RN, education coordinator for the ED at Shady Grove Adventist Hospital in Rockville, MD.
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ED nurses at Mecosta County General Hospital, a 78-bed hospital in Big Rapids, MI, took quick action when a man came in yelling that his wife, who was still in the car, had been stung by bees and was allergic.
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If a chemical attack occurs in your community, you or another ED nurse may be the one to identify it. Thus, you should have a high index of suspicion for terrorism when triaging or assessing patients.
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