Journal Outline- ICU
The Type of personnel that works in the ICU are critical care Registered Nurses, Registered Respiratory Therapists, Nutritionists, Physical Therapists, Certified Nursing Assistants, Pulmonologists, Anesthesiologists, Patient Care Techs and of course the cleaning staff.
Equipment:
Cardiac monitors are used to monitor the electrical activity of the heart. The monitor looks like a computer screen with lines, or tracings, moving across the screen. The monitor has electrodes that are attached to the patient's chest with sticky pads. A pulse oximeter allows the critical care team to monitor the saturation of oxygen in the blood. It looks like a clothespin and is attached to a patient's finger, or it may be smaller and clipped onto the earlobe. A pulmonary artery catheter is used to measure the amount of fluid filling the heart as well as to determine how the heart is functioning. It is inserted through the large vessels of the neck or upper chest and threaded into the heart. Arterial lines are used for continuous monitoring of blood pressure. An IV is a plastic catheter tube that is inserted into the veins. Fluids, medications, nutrition preparations, and blood products are administered through IV catheters. Patients in ICU often have multiple IVs.
Chest tubes are inserted through the chest wall into the space around the lung to drain fluid or air that has accumulated and prevent the lung from being able to expand.
Urinary catheters are inserted through the urethra into the bladder. Urinary catheters continuously drain the bladder and allow for accurate measurement of urinary output.
Endotracheal tubes are used when mechanical ventilation is necessary.
The ventilator, or respirator, is a breathing machine that helps patients breathe when they are too ill to breathe on their own.
The interaction I observed between the patients and healthcare workers seemed to be personal. The nurses were very nice and treated all the patients in...