ED Nursing Archives – September 1, 2005
September 1, 2005
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EDs aren’t following heart attack guidelines: Revamp protocols now
Minutes after a man dialed 911 and was rushed to an ED in rural Minnesota, the patient was on a helicopter being transported to a hospital 60 miles away to receive percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) to open a blocked left anterior descending artery. -
Do physicians comply with verbal orders policy?
Your ED has a policy that verbal orders are to be used in emergencies only but a medical staff member routinely calls in telephone orders for patients. What do you do? -
When physicians won't comply, then document
At Swedish Medical Center in Seattle, verbal orders are accepted only when a patients life or limb is in danger; otherwise, the physician must write the order, says Judy Street, RN, manager of emergency services. -
Are cancer patients getting inadequate care in your ED?
After ED nurses detected a mild fever in a cancer patient, a decision was made to start treatment after the patient was admitted to the floor. -
Avoid EMTALA violations: Never say these 3 things
Your EDs waiting room is packed with patients, and stress levels are rising fast. A man with an ankle injury asks angrily, How much longer will I have to wait? You roll your eyes and tell him it could be hours. -
Staff incentives help prepare for surveys
Is an unannounced survey from the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations (JCAHO) topping your worry list these days? All Joint Commission surveys will be unannounced as of Jan. 1, 2006, which means that youll need to be ready for surveyors to walk in at any minute. -
Here are questions to prepare for JCAHO
Below are questions asked of ED nurses at Wake Forest University Medical Center in Winston-Salem, NC, to prepare for an unannounced survey by the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations (JCAHO): -
Project gives nurses quick access to patient meds
A woman found unconscious by co-workers. An elderly man who says he takes several medications, but he cant recall the names or dosages. A teenage girl critically injured in a motor vehicle accident. -
Avoid recording inaccurate respiratory rates at triage
Do you always measure a patients respiratory rate at triage? Would it surprise you to know that what youre documenting often is inaccurate, according to new research.