Dr. Paul Langlois – 2-Day Managing Patient Emergencies: Critical Care Skills Every Nurse Must Know

Outline

Day One

Identifying the RED Flags

• Critical Thinking During a Crisis
• Vital Signs & ABCDs
• Methods for Establishing and Maintaining Airway
• Breathing: More Than a Rate Issue
• Circulation & Perfusion
• Differential Diagnosis – 4 Methods of Determining Cause
• Rapid Assessment Techniques
• Critical Questions to Ask Your Patient
• Identifying High-Risk Populations
• Pre-Morbid Conditions
• Age Considerations

Cardiovascular Prevention, Presentation, Action for: “I’m having chest pain”

• Recognizing Arrhythmias – Stable, Unstable and Lethal
• 12-Lead EKG: Just the Down and Dirty
• Utilizing a Systematic Approach
• Patterns of Ischemia, Injury & Infarct
• Acute Myocardial Infarction: STEMI/NSTEMI
• Key Assessments & Interventions tPA Guidelines
• Cath Lab Intervention
• Laboratory Parameters
• Recognizing Subtle Changes
• Heart Failure
• Recent Advances in Care
• Medication Management
• Managing Intake and Output Vascular Abnormalities

Respiratory Prevention, Presentation, Action for: “I can’t breathe”

• Assessment & Critical Interventions for:
  • Pulmonary Embolism
  • Pulmonary Edema
  • Acute Asthma Attack
  • Spontaneous Pneumothorax
  • Allergic Reactions
  • The Patient Who Needs Assistance O2, CPAP, BiPAP
  • Indications for Intubation
  • Positive Pressure Ventilation
  • Chest Tube Management
  • Ventilator Settings Every Nurse Must Know
  • Easy ABG Analysis… Really!

Endocrine Prevention, Presentation, Action for: “I don’t feel right”

• The Differences of DKA and HHNK
• Early Recognition of Hypoglycemia
• Thyroid Storm: Physical and Psychiatric Symptoms
• Managing Adrenal Crisis
• Critical Lab Findings

Day Two

Gastrointestinal Prevention, Presentation, Action for: “My aching belly”

• Warning Signs of Acute Pancreatitis
• Upper vs. Lower GI Bleeding
• Perforated Bowel
• Early Signs of Small Bowel Obstruction – Illeus
• Interpreting the Lab Tests

Neurological Prevention, Presentation and Action for: “My head hurts!”

• Elevated Intracranial Pressure
• Clues When you Don’t have a Monitor
• Ischemic vs. Hemorrhagic Stroke
• Inclusion/Exclusion for tPA
• Essential Assessments post-tPA
• Management Strategies for Seizures
• The Patient in Withdrawal
• Known vs. Suspected ETOH/Drug Abuse
• Interventions for Delirium Tremors
• Critical Labs

Renal Prevention, Presentation and Action for: “I can’t make urine”

• Acute vs. Chronic Kidney Disease
• Recognizing Acute Kidney Injury
• Key Assessments
• Interpreting the Lab Data

Pain, Agitation & Delirium

• Analgesics: Too Much or Too Little
• Managing the Bedside Procedure
• Type of Sedating Medications
• Ensuring Appropriate Monitoring
• Delirium: So Many Causes, So Many Options…
• Key Assessments & Interventions

Managing the Decompensating Patient No Pulse, No Blood Pressure, No Respirations… Now What?

• Identifying Cardiac Causes
• Street Drugs & Poisoning
• Critical Assessments & Interventions
• MUST KNOW Reversal Agents