ED Nursing articles from April 2008

ED Nursing archives from April 2008

Don't allow 'stable' elders to deteriorate during long waits.
April 1, 2008... Don't allow 'stable' elders to deteriorate during long waits Potential for catastrophe is 'very high' General malaise is the only complaint of a 77-year-old man and, other than a low-grade fever, his vital signs are within normal...

Novel ways to improve triage of elderly patients.
April 1, 2008... Novel ways to improve triage of elderly patients Automatically give patients higher acuity Triage often is extra challenging with elderly patients, says Korene Christianson, RN, CEN, ED clinical director at Methodist North Hospital in...

Web Alert: Site gives free info on geriatric ED care.
April 1, 2008... Site gives free info on geriatric ED care The next time an older person arrives in your ED with atypical or vague symptoms, an online resource could help you assess that patient. "ConsultGeriRN is an excellent free resource for...

You can't assume headaches are benign.(Report)
April 1, 2008... You can't assume headaches are benign An elderly woman tells ED triage nurses she's had an excruciating, unrelenting headache for the past two days. She has a steady gait. She is alert and oriented without numbness, weakness, imbalance,...

If patients say this, suspect life-threatening headache.
April 1, 2008... If patients say this, suspect life-threatening headache Don't undertriage patients If you assume that patients complaining of headache are nontherapeutic medication seekers or chronic complainers, you risk undertriaging these patients,...

Protocol addresses pain of adult trauma patients.
April 1, 2008... Protocol addresses pain of adult trauma patients Patients, nurses, and doctors benefit Do your trauma patients suffer longer than they need to because of delays in pain management? "There is no doubt that this is an issue for...

Do you follow guidelines for traumatic brain injury?(Report)
April 1, 2008... Do you follow guidelines for traumatic brain injury? When guidelines for severe traumatic brain injury (TBI) are followed, deaths decrease by 50% and patients with poor outcomes decrease from 34% to 19%, according to a recent study.sup.1...

Don't make these mistakes when assessing for violence.
April 1, 2008... Don't make these mistakes when assessing for violence Always ask follow-up questions Do you know how to increase the likelihood that a patient will tell you about abuse? During 293 audiotaped interactions with ED staff assessing for...

CNE objectives/questions.
April 1, 2008... CNE objectives/questions Participants who complete this activity will be able to: *identify clinical, regulatory, or social issues relating to ED nursing; *describe how those issues affect nursing service delivery; *integrate...