Marchantia

Well first of all thanks for keeping this thread active. Gosh compared to you guys i still feel like a toddler. My nursing experience is barely 4 years of which 2 and a half of those have been in the cathlab. Well in terms of the capacity that we handle i would say that we are a small facility, but we see it all. You name it and we do it, coronary diagnostic and intervention procedures, EP and ablation studies, PPM, ICD's loop recorder insertions, PTMC, and of course congenital heart defect closures ( e.g. ASD, VSD, PDA). We get patients as old as a day old to somtimes an 80 year old. keep on posting and keep this thread active

i am lately seeing so many threads related to the cath lab , which got me wondering that how many nurses out there work in the cathlab. the purpose of starting this thread is to introduce ourselves to each other and share our personal experiences with each other. take care everyone.

Hey ther! I would definately suggest for you to take up the cath lab offer. Having worked in the cath lab for almost 3 years, i have found this area the most rewarding and mentally challenging out of all the areas i have rotated in. This much is correct that some experience would definately prove beneficial . Regarding what sort of experience , i would say it always helps to have some experience in handling pts with various cardiac issues (things that are found commonly in the coronary care unit e.g. MI,s, pts on a vent or on an IABP, handling pts with a temporary or permanent pacemaker). A sound knowledge of cardiac drugs and those used in the event of a cardiac arrest is also helpfull. I'm not saying that a novice nurse would not be able to handle him/herself just that the cathlab is somewhat apart from any other area of the hospital. Hope this info was useful. Feel free to ask any other queries or questions you may have. Take care.

The first is to try and apply manual pressure 2-3 finger spaces above the angio site. also remember to call for a backup, a person who will be monitoring the patients vitals etc. sudden drops in pressures may indicate a massive blood loss, which would neeed to be corrected with fluids. plus also recheck haemoglobin levels which will provide guidance wether or not the patient needs to be transfused with blood. assess the patient's pain levels (some pain is expected on the site where manual pressure is applied), some relaxants may be prescribed in order to calm the patient (a patient that does lay still and allow you to effectively apply manual pressure will only in turn make things worse for himself). in cases where all atempts to reduce or control the hematoma fails, the vascular surgery team may be called upon for a consult.

Patients refer to the female nurses as 'nurse' and they call you by your first name. When the female nurses say how comfortable they feel with you in the room and not with the male techs (it becomes even more embarasing when such statements are made right in fromt of the male techs and the snickers that burst out of them). When the attending bursts out on you for things not going his way, despite female nurses also being present in the same procedure. when you tell people that you are a nurse and they reaffirm by saying 'oh so ure a 'male nurse' when ure asked the same age old frustrating question, why did you take up nursing? you should have been a doctor...

Well let me tell you this much, if your heart is in cardiology (excuse the pun), i would have to say go ahead and take that transfer. Dont worry you'll get to see your fair share of fliud lines, hehehe....

Hey whats the Generic Name for this drug, or is this the Generic name?

Sorry for sounding ignorant, but what exactly is this WITT system that you are refering to?

Hi guys. Was just wondering what scale or methods do you use for meassuring hematomas usually associated with angiography via a femoral approach. Any help would be highly appreciated. Thanks.

i completly agree with all the coments stated above. The IABP can be a pretty frightining peice of equipment, specially if one has not had a prior experience. I remember that during my initial months in the cathlab i would panic each time when the orders were given to prepare the patient for an IABP insertion during a procedure. It was only through time and experience that one can grow accustomed to the device. another thing, it takes quite a bit of convincing power to get the pt on a IABP to lie straight, esp the elderly. There are some things that no text books can teach you, but rather observing and picking up pointers from senior members of the team. Adressing your concern related to lierature realted to IABP, i would recommend doing a google serach with the words IABP and the manufactueres name (in my case Arrow , which is the type of device we use) in the key words section. that should help you to find online information that at least i found immensely helpful. Good Luck Amyn Merchant

Thanks for your replies. Our hospital is currently using the 'VIP' model manufactured by St. Jude. We are currently advising our patients to take bed rest for 2 hours prior to mobilization and to inform the assigned nurse prior to it.

I was wondering wether or not your hospitals have develped protocols or policies regarding insertion and post insertion care/management of patients with reference to angioseals (after both angiography and angioplasties). Any help would be welcome. Thanks.

Howdy folks !!! Anyone one have any idea as to the recommendations on how long after Streptokinase Infusion is a patient allowed to be scheduled for an angiogram ? Any information will be extremely helpfull. Take care y'all.

You are absolutely right tweety, it's the pt that matters. Thanks for helping me clear out my head.

Hey guys Have any of you faced situations in which you were asked to take sides, what i mean is that you have male techs on one side saying that you have to back us up in what ever you say, cause you know its a guy thing, and then on the other sides been asked by female nurses that we nurses have to stick together and that we cant let the techs take control of things. just like to add on, i'm the only male nurse in my unit. i mean like i'm totally caught in the middle, i dont wish to take sides, but im being forced to and have no idea how to handle the situation. if i side with the nurses, the guys take offense to it, and if i side with the techs my female counterparts get upset.