dmc_rrt

dmc_rrt

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All Content by dmc_rrt

  1. Trach suctioning. Bullet vs. no bullet

    We teach all our long term trach pts to use these, or sterile saline through a syringe, when they need to clear their secretions. Its NBD
  2. lung sounds with vent

    You can usually hear the different breath sounds with a vent. I don't know the circumstances, but rapid gunshots arn't normal vent sounds. I think you were probably hearing circuit noise. perhaps there was water in it?
  3. respiratory distress vs respiraotry failure

    Simply put: Resp distress, which is increased WOB, will lead to resp failure when the muscles can no longer do the work. similar to untrained legs trying to run a marathon. ARDS is filling of the alveoli with protiens leading to poor lung compliance....
  4. respirator mask for copd patients

    If the Hypoxic Drive to Breath theory is correct, it should happen immediatly as soon as the PaO2 becomes greater then 60mmhg. When the PaO2 is less than 60mmhg the peripheral O2 recepters kick in. As stated earlier PaO2 60mmhg = Sats of 90% (Approx....
  5. Questions on Mechanical Ventilators

    I agree with you, that oxygen toxicity does not fit. How can you get oxygen toxicity if you ventilate your pt with high volumes or pressures on an FiO2 of .21? High pressures and volumes do release inflamitory mediators in the lungs, and I would assu...
  6. Is a Bronchoscopy needed for pt who chokes on dinner?

    They might do a pharynoscopy to assess to compentency of the Larynx. This looks like a small bronchoscope.
  7. COPD & NRB your input please

    As an RT I would definetly put the pt. on the NRB. Actually it sounds like the pt needed BiPap more then anything. I have never seen a COPDer stop breathing from too much O2, and if it does you remove the O2, and soon the pt will start breathing agai...
  8. Danger to self? help!

    I understand she was palliative, so the main objective here is to make the pt. and her family comfortable. The removal of O2 should not have been a problem, the lack of proper sedation is more of a problem.
  9. USE of PF Ratio with ARDS

    Here is the ARDSnet protcol: NHLBI ARDS Network INCLUSION CRITERIA: Acute onset of ,Tahoma],Tahoma]1. PaO2/FiO2 ≤ 300 (corrected for altitude) ,Tahoma],Tahoma]2. Bilateral (patchy, diffuse, or homogeneous) infiltrates consistent with pulmonary ede...
  10. Central Line Insertion

    I say the Doc's retty lucky to have you there. I place femoral Central Lines and Have to get my own stuff together, and I am usually left alone, unlesss someone wants to watch. Tell him to quit his ********.
  11. Dsitinguishing Breath Sounds

    Coarse crackles on expiration are usually due to secretions. I find that most pleural effusions present as diminished breath sounds. Remember the fluid is gravity dependant and will usually collect at the bases when the pt is sitting upright and alon...
  12. Increase of super morbidly obese patients?

    Funny, an ER RN and myself were just talking about it this morning
  13. Ambu bags (inpt)

    For cost effectiveness, my hospital has those mouth-to-mouth thingys, which to my own personal opinion are a joke. I have yet to see them used effectivly at the beggining of a code. The pt is blue, as the Crash Cart is pulled over, so that proper ven...
  14. Hijab (headscarf) Nurses

    I've seen quite a few Drs. wear them too. they are all respected Pts. and peers.
  15. communicating w/ pts on ventilators

    I have one pt that uses his i-touch
  16. When to transition from non rebreather to bag valve mask?

    I agee with dano. Prior to intubation, if the pt can hold their sats close to 100% by breathing on their own, then use the NRBM. Bagging can cause increased anxiety, and gastric insufflation.
  17. Need help on mark twain quote!

    I think that it means to sort through the BS of what you're tought, and find out for yourself what is real. Just because a teacher or a book tells you something doesn't make it true. This is why it is also important to critique research on your own, ...
  18. Facilitating intubations

    Some of tythis stuff might have already been covered, but here's my 2 bits: 1. Get the bed ready, away from the wall, raisednup to about belly button level. 2. Suction ready 3. Pt on 100% O2 4. BP cuff on arm that does not have IV access in it. 5. Ge...
  19. Frustrated over a code

    I would write up an incident report in regards to the lack of training by the MRI/ ultrasound staff. Any person in the hospital should know that sats of 40% is not acceptable. They should have called you for an assessment. As for calming down after ...
  20. Transporting Pt. on O2

    Your plastic tank sounds like a refillable liquid O2 tank. The plastic housing can get banged up, but it is there to protect the metal tank inside.
  21. Do your ICUs/hospitals offer all therapies?

    We have a 14 bed ICU. We don't offer PRISMA, HFOV, ECMO, we have NO but have not used it in 3 yrs. Any heart pts get transferred out to other hospitals for surgery. Our long term vents get transferred to general wards, until they can be placed in lon...
  22. Neuro Yawn

    I noticed when I suction my vegatative trach pts that it also seems to trigger a yawn.
  23. Question about plateau pressures

    Ok, I'm trying to follow this thread, but its a little confusing. PEEP is the constant, base level, minimum pressure applied to the lungs by the vent, helping to splint the airways open. Inspiratory Pressure is indeed added on top of that, when a pre...
  24. weaning

    Sorry about your Sister in Law, She sounds very sick. I don't know all the parts to this story, but here is my two bits:My guess is that the acidosis is probably caused by increased urea(ARF) and/or increased lactate from the liver failure. After two...
  25. ET size HELP!

    under the connector hub of the ETT are the numbers, they are hard to see. A trick is to press your bare finger underneath the flange. The numbers will be pressed into your skin and you can then read them.