ED Nursing Archives – April 1, 2005
April 1, 2005
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Are your sedation practices safe? New ACEP guidelines offer help
A 12-year-old child is sedated in your ED after a fall off a second-story balcony before being taken for a computerized tomography scan. If the childs blood pressure lowered suddenly, would you react immediately? -
Decrease your ED’s supply par levels and save
Do you store intravenous lines, pulse oximetry supplies, and disposable blood pressure cuffs in treatment rooms? If so, dollars are likely trickling out of your ED in the form of missing or uncharged supplies. -
Clues offered on queries for stroke certification
Are you ready to put your EDs stroke care under the microscope to be inspected by surveyors from the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations? A growing number of EDs are applying for Joint Commissions Primary Stroke Center Certification program, which requires an on-site survey to assess whether stroke care meets national quality standards. -
What has your ED done to improve stroke care?
When Joint Commission surveyors arrive in your ED to assess stroke care, theyll have one thing on their minds: What youre done to improve and speed assessment and treatment. -
Try these tips to ease tensions with floor nurses
Do you bear the wrath of frustrated floor nurses due to factors beyond your control, such as crowded waiting rooms and hallways filled with admitted patients? -
4 ways to give psychiatric patients privacy in your ED
Imagine a sullen teenager bring brought to your ED by her mother, who tells you she is suicidal. Behind her you see a man clutching his chest and a woman who reports blurry vision. Would you take the time to bring the patient to a private area before asking if she intends to harm herself? -
Tip of the Month
When a child is vomiting and has diarrhea, is your first thought to give intravenous (IV) fluids? The literature shows that for a mildly to moderately dehydrated child, giving fluids orally works just as well, says Lynn Daum, RN, BSN, special projects coordinator for emergency services nursing at Cincinnati Childrens Hospital Medical Center. -
Number of ED visits for injured elderly increasing
Are you treating more injured elderly patients in your ED? A report from the Bethesda, MD-based U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission shows a 73% increase in the number of patients 75 and older treated for product-related injuries in EDs from 1991 to 2002, with falls the leading cause of injury.