HAVE A GOOD WEEK

Dear nurses,

Hope your week is going well. I have just added some brain teasers below, that may be helpful to you as you go about your assessment.
Here are some additional topics for your learning pleasure:
Hemodynamic Monitoring
Hypothermia

Enjoy learnng.

God bless you all

WHAT DO SAH AND MENINGITIS HAVE IN COMMON

What do Subarachnoid hemorrhage and meningitis have in common?
Well the symptoms are alike. They both exhibit symptoms like the ones
above (Kernig's and Brudzinski's signs). To learn more about this topic,
 click on the link: Sessions 23

Meningitis -Quiz

Also take the quiz on:
SAH 

And enjoy learning!
Updated 4/23

RECEPTIVE AND EXPRESSIVE APHASIA

Updated 1/25

Dear nurses,

Assessment in the Clinical Setting is no longer available.

Receptive aphasia - In the image above, Alice had
a stroke which involved Wernicke's area. She has 
difficulty understanding when spoken to.Wernicke's
area is responsible for speech comprehension.

Expressive aphasia - Martha had a stroke that
involved Broca's area. She knows what she
wishes to say, but has difficulty expressing
herself. She gets frustrated and cries a lot.
This is sometimes described as " confused",
is not the case

For additional updated information on this topic visit:

Stroke assessment and brain involvement

or watch the video:

Sessions 65 - Stroke or no Stroke

The largest of the cranial nerves, is the Trigeminal.
                 This nerve contains three branches:
                Opthalmic ( corneal blink reflex). 
                           Maxillary - which supplies the upper jaw

                   Mandibular - controls the lower jaw.

Cranial nerve 7 - is the facial nerve , this is

checked with the trigeminal nerve.

Learning for the layperson

BRAIN TEASERS FOR NURSES

Updated 10/24

Dear nurses,

Have you ever stopped to consider what certain medical terminology mean?

Well, here are some brain teasers just for you.

For example, the cerebellum is the part of the brain that works on coordination.
When it is injured by trauma, a patient may become very unstable on his feet:
  "wobbly walk".              

Stroke Series is no longer available.
STROKE SERIES -ASSESSMENT IN THE CLINICAL SETTING.

MAY GOD BLESS YOU, NURSES

Dear nurses,

It is a pleasure to serve you. Please bear with me while I put together

THE CLINICAL SETTING STEP BY STEP, chapter 10. THIS CHAPTER

will focus on topics such as heart, liver and kidney transplantation.

May God bless you all.

I thank God for sharing His wisdom with me, to help my fellow nurses.

Please take a moment to look at the topics below.

Post Anesthesia Care Unit (PACU) is a clinical area that many nurses may not be familiar with.

Learning more is easy. Just click on the link:THE CLINICAL STEP BY STEP, chapter9
New nurses please visit dearnurses.org this site is specially made for the new or
inexperienced nurse, or those nurses returning to the profession after an extended absence.

HYPOTHERMIA IN THE PACU PATIENT

                           

                                             

 In the image above, a patient has just arrived
 in the PACU. The core temperature is 95
 degrees Fahrenheit. Warm blankets or a Bair
 Hugger may be used.

Defining Hypothermia
Hypothermia is defined as a drop in core temperature
of less than 95 Fahrenheit(35 Celsius). Regardless of
the cause, it is considered to be life - threatening. 

Hypothermia increases the body's demand for oxygen. 
If left untreated, it may lead to a myocardial infarction

 (heart attack). 

Trauma Care - Part 1 is no longer available
                             

Trauma resulting in excessive blood loss,

     as well as alcohol ingestion, may also         
lead to hypothermia.Symptoms include:
shivering, blue lips, decrease in level

of consciousness and cold extremities. IV
fluids may have to be warmed. 

                                           

ANTICOAGULATION THERAPY IN THE PACU

Anticoagulation Therapy( Sessions 11) such as Heparin is used in many conditions.

If your were assigned to a patient in PACU, who is receiving Heparin Therapy, would

you know what to monitor? To learn more, click on the link:

http://dearnurses.net/the_clinical_setting_step_by_step  Chap 9.

AIRWAY MANAGEMENT OF THE PACU PATIENT

When a patient arrives in PACU, airway management
should not be ignored. Conditions such as hypoxia may result. 

Patients who have a prior history of respiratory problems, may
not be extubated following surgery. They may require ventilatory
support. An ABG may be ordered by the doctor, to evaluate any
hypoxia.

See the above image for more helpful information.

Scenario: The patient above, was in respiratory distress
and placed  on mechanical ventilation. It is difficult
for the patient on a ventilator to describe pain. Knowing
how to assess is very important.

This topic , including quiz questions continue here:

Mechanical ventilation

HAVE A GOOD WEEK AND ENJOY LEARNING

Dear nurses,

It is always a pleasure to serve you. I have added some topics below, which might be helpful for many of you in the clinical setting. Stay posted for more topics to come soon. God bless you all.

Enjoy learning more about Chapter 9, THE CLINICAL SETTING STEP BY STEP.

BRAIN STEM FUNCTION

 Updated 2/24

Dear nurses,

The Clinical Setting Step by Step is no longer available. Please

click on the link : Cranial nerves

for more updated information.

When the neurological assessment is done, do you fully understand what part of the brain is involved and what to look for? For more helpful information on brain stem function, please go to

THE CLINICAL SETTING STEP BY STEP (Chapter 9 )and enjoy learning.

EPIDURAL VS. SUBDURAL BLEEDING AND HEMATOMA

Updated 1/25

Dear nurses,

The Clinical Setting Step by Step is no longer available.

Epidural vs. subdural bleed

An epidural bleed is an arterial bleed. The patient has a brief period of unconsciousness following injury. He then becomes lucid and quickly progresses to unconsciousness and possible coma. A common site for injury is the meningeal artery which runs close to the surface, behind the ear.

A subdural bleed ( hematoma) is venous and progresses slowly. The patient may not experience any symptoms for a few days. It may even become chronic. Suspect a subdural bleed , if the patient had a fall / head injury and was initially okay, then later becomes unconscious. It is common in alcoholics.

                      Learn more about:  Subarachnoid hemorrhage

PAIN MANAGEMENT

Pain assessment ( Sessions 12 ) and management is a very important tool in the clinical
setting. Regardless of the age or situation , it is necessary to control pain. For more helpful information on this topic, please click on the link:
http://www.dearnurses.com/pain_management_pain_assessment

HAVE A GOOD WEEK

Dear nurses,

It is always a pleasure to help my fellow nurses. I am just returning from a much needed break. I have also just completed The Clinical Setting Step by Step, chapter 9. Hope you can learn more about the patient in *PACU. More images will be posted soon.

*Chapter 9

Have a good week

THE POSTOPERATIVE PATIENT

When the patient arrives in PACU. Even if you are not familiar with PACU, you may be floated to this area depending on the circumstances. The Clinical Setting Step by Step, Chapter 9 is packed with helpful information. Enjoy learning.