Does teh new ACLS guidelines make a difference?

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I just recerted my ACLS and was surprised by the 2005 changes. It seems like a much better and controlled process but I have yet to see it work in real life. It has been a while since I was in a code but is your hospital and code teams actually running codes by the new guide lines and are the patient outcomes any better?

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To be honest with you the changes are not that drastic. Overall mortality for a patient that arrests either in or out of a hospital is about 65%, pretty high. I have been to numerous codes in my career and I hate to say it but physicans as well as nurses are very passive when it comes to the protocols. They either don't know them, or they want to check for a pulse every 5 seconds. Don't forget to that they run them entirely to long. By the time a pulse is obtained, his brain has already died. I rarely see physicians run them according to protocols. Alot of physicians are not even ACLS trained.

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I feel very ignorant, but what is ACLS?

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Okay let me try some common sense here, is it advanced life support certification. Starting my ADN Monday, gee I sure do have a lot to learn :idea:

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Okay let me try some common sense here, is it advanced life support certification. Starting my ADN Monday, gee I sure do have a lot to learn :idea:

Yes - it's Advanced Cardiovascular Life Support, a course which teaches healthcare providers (like nurses, doctors, paramedics, etc) to manage a CPR situation or an emergency like a heart attack or stroke. In 2005, major changes were made to the steps in the ACLS protocols.

Check out the link:

ACLS Provider Course

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Thank you Eric, I appreciate your response.

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Specializes in ICU, CM, Geriatrics, Management.

Congrats Margaret!

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