A Nurse's Survival Guide to Critical Care - Updated Edition Elsevier eBook on Vitalsource (Retail Access Card), 1st Edition

Completely updated and revised content written by authors with extensive nursing experience in the field

Physiological, psychological and social areas, as well as legal issues, ethical and moral dilemmas that critical care nurses and health care practitioners may face on a daily basis

Boxes, tips and diagrams to help bridge the theory-practice gap while embarking on your critical care career.

Section 1 - General principles of critical care

1.1: Introduction to critical care nursing

1.2:    Health and Safety

1.3: Emergencies and life-threatening conditions

1.4:    Life threatening complications/ outcomes

Section 2 - Patient assessment and investigations

2.1: Identification of patient needs/problems

2.2: Assessment

2.3: Haemodynamic monitoring

2.4: Diagnostic procedures

Section 3 - Critical care interventions

3.1:  Medium-technology life-support interventions

3.2:  High-technology life-support interventions

3.3: Caring for a critical care patient

3.4: Intubation and ventilation

3.5: Transfer of critical care patients

Section 4 - Common conditions/reasons for admission

4.1: Physiological processes common to all medical and surgical conditions 

4.2: Neurological

4.3: Endocrine disorders

4.4: Respiratory

4.5: Cardiovascular

4.6: Renal

4.7: Gastrointestinal (GIT)

4.8: Immunological

4.9: Burns

4.10: Poisoning/overdose

Section 5 - Psychological and ethical care

5.1: Mental effects of critical care

5.2: Death and dying in critical care

5.3: Professional practice issues

Section 6 - Pharmacology

6.1:  Medication management

6.2:     Pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics

6.3:  Classification of drugs used in critical care

6.4: Drug calculations

6.5: Nurse prescribing

References

Further Reading

Appendix 1 Units of measurement

Appendix 2 Normal values

Appendix 3 Drug measurement and calculations

Glossary

Index

Sharon L. Edwards, EdD SFHEA NTF MSc PGCEA DipN(Lon) RN, Senior Lecturer, School of Nursing and Allied Health, Buckinghamshire New University, Uxbridge, UK and Joyce Williams, RN BSc (Hons) MSc PGCert FHEA, Senior Lecturer, Buckinghamshire New University, Uxbridge, UK