Staffing & Patient Acuity

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Specializes in CVICU, ICU, Cardiac/Telemetry.

Hey all!

CVICU RN here and was just wanting to get a feel of how other CVICUs staff. Currently where I work our post-op hearts are 1:1 for 6 hours (which we changed about a year ago from 4 hours). In order to keep the patient 1:1 they have to be pretty unstable (ie/ lots of pressors, oxygenation/ventilation issues etc).

Also, how do your units staff for patients with IABP? Ours aren't always 1:1 but I've heard of many hospitals that keep IABP pts 1:1.

Info would be greatly appreciated!

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Fresh post ops in our hospital are 1:1 until extubated. IABPs are always 1:1.

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I wish our fresh heart post-ops patients were 1:1! Sometimes even our balloons are paired (as long as the patient is stable and paired with a very stable patient.)

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Specializes in CVICU.

IABP always 1:1. Fresh open hearts are 1:1 usually until the next morning when the swan is removed. Sometimes they are 1:1 longer if they are unstable.

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Hey all!

CVICU RN here and was just wanting to get a feel of how other CVICUs staff. Currently where I work our post-op hearts are 1:1 for 6 hours (which we changed about a year ago from 4 hours). In order to keep the patient 1:1 they have to be pretty unstable (ie/ lots of pressors, oxygenation/ventilation issues etc).

Also, how do your units staff for patients with IABP? Ours aren't always 1:1 but I've heard of many hospitals that keep IABP pts 1:1.

Info would be greatly appreciated!

My hospital we have 1:2 ratio with IABP

Up Vote Up Vote ×
Hey all!

CVICU RN here and was just wanting to get a feel of how other CVICUs staff. Currently where I work our post-op hearts are 1:1 for 6 hours (which we changed about a year ago from 4 hours). In order to keep the patient 1:1 they have to be pretty unstable (ie/ lots of pressors, oxygenation/ventilation issues etc).

Also, how do your units staff for patients with IABP? Ours aren't always 1:1 but I've heard of many hospitals that keep IABP pts 1:1.

Info would be greatly appreciated!

My hospital we have 1:2 ratio with IABP

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1:2 with IABP last week I somehow ended up with two( stable) pt both with IABP. I had alot of charting but otherwise it was fine.

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We 1:1 fresh hearts for 6hrs, then longer only if warranted (very unstable...). IABP in itself doesn't buy 1:1 for us...most often they're paired with another stable/"easy" pt; only 1:1 if extremely unstable (lots of pressor titration, CRRT, etc).

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We are pretty spoiled. We staff post op hearts 1:1 for a while. Ex: come in at 1300 extubated at 1500 and then they are 1:1 until the next morning. We are in the process of revamping a bit and I'm sure that will change. We operate on a lot of high risk people who are pretty sick for a while though...

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Specializes in Mechanical Circulatory Support.

We're pretty spoiled with our post-ops as well. We single our post-ops until extubated and dangled (mobility is HUGE in our ICU). If a pt is extubated toward the middle or end of the shift, they are usually left 1:1 for one more shift. My hospital is a large university hospital (and union) with very high acuity. The last CVICU I worked at was smaller and did more standard cases, mostly valves and CABGs. They were doubled as soon as they were extubated, sometimes sooner.

Our balloon pumps are generally 1:2 but those are often some of our more stable patients - many of our IABP pts have them placed to optimize them for VAD surgery.

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My hospital is 1:1 for fresh hearts and iabp 1:2

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Specializes in CVICU, Infectious Disease.

1:1 fresh hearts until extubated, or until 12 midnight if they're not going to be extubated & are part of the first group (arrival 1300-1400)...And are otherwise stable. :-)

CRRT is 1:1, & Hypothermia Protocol (s/p MI) is 1:1. We pair just about everything else.

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