Acute care essay
ACUTE CARE NEEDS
NPCG2025
STUDENT ID 25586394
Word count: 1986
CASE STUDY
On admission to the hospital it is important that Mr Taylor is given an immediate and systematic assessment which will alert the healthcare professionals to any deterioration in his condition. The assessment method used in this case is the Airway, Breathing, Circulation, Disability, Exposure (ABCDE) approach. Thim et al (2012) suggests that the aims of this approach are to provide the patient with lifesaving treatment, the ability to break down into more manageable chunks the complex clinical situation. It also provides all healthcare providers with a common awareness and serves as an algorithm for treatment and assessing which in turn can buy time to enable a final diagnosis and treatment plan to be made. According to the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) (2007), patients may receive suboptimal care if staff do no act on clinical deterioration in a timely manner.
Furthermore, failure to follow a systematic assessment in the treatment of an acutely ill patient is also another contributing factor (Resuscitation Council UK 2006). There is however, the risk of this kind of approach being subjective as each individual may observe, feel or hear symptoms differently. Due to the word constraint, this assignment will concentrate on the breathing assessment aspect of Dominic’s condition and also the pathophysiology of COPD and the use of oxygen (O2) as treatment to alleviate his symptoms.
Mr Taylor’s airway is assessed first by asking simple questions and obtaining a patient history and listening to how he responds (i.e. in full sentences or short sentences). The questions asked should enable you to take a patient history and to assess when his new symptoms started. Also, whilst doing this task note is taken of his general appearance (such as skin colour, chest movement) and noting whether he appears to be distressed, anxious or
NPCG2025
STUDENT ID 25586394
Word count: 1986
CASE STUDY
On admission to the hospital it is important that Mr Taylor is given an immediate and systematic assessment which will alert the healthcare professionals to any deterioration in his condition. The assessment method used in this case is the Airway, Breathing, Circulation, Disability, Exposure (ABCDE) approach. Thim et al (2012) suggests that the aims of this approach are to provide the patient with lifesaving treatment, the ability to break down into more manageable chunks the complex clinical situation. It also provides all healthcare providers with a common awareness and serves as an algorithm for treatment and assessing which in turn can buy time to enable a final diagnosis and treatment plan to be made. According to the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) (2007), patients may receive suboptimal care if staff do no act on clinical deterioration in a timely manner.
Furthermore, failure to follow a systematic assessment in the treatment of an acutely ill patient is also another contributing factor (Resuscitation Council UK 2006). There is however, the risk of this kind of approach being subjective as each individual may observe, feel or hear symptoms differently. Due to the word constraint, this assignment will concentrate on the breathing assessment aspect of Dominic’s condition and also the pathophysiology of COPD and the use of oxygen (O2) as treatment to alleviate his symptoms.
Mr Taylor’s airway is assessed first by asking simple questions and obtaining a patient history and listening to how he responds (i.e. in full sentences or short sentences). The questions asked should enable you to take a patient history and to assess when his new symptoms started. Also, whilst doing this task note is taken of his general appearance (such as skin colour, chest movement) and noting whether he appears to be distressed, anxious or
References: British Thoracic Society (2008a) Guideline for Emergency Oxygen Use in Adult Patients. London: The British Thoracic Society Britton M (2002) Preventing and treating acute episodes of COPD Credland N (2013) Non-invasive ventilation in COPD exacerbations. Nursing Times 109(36):16-21 Creed F and Spiers C (2011) Care of the Acutely Ill Adult – An Essential Guide for Nurses Gronkiewicz C and Borkgren-Okonek M (2004) Acute Exacerbation of COPD: Nursing Application of Evidence-Based Guidelines. Critical Care Nurse Quarterly 27(04):336-352 Jevon R (2010) Assessment of critically ill patients: the ABCDE approach