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Alarming Signs: A Hazard Approaching to Crash Cart

Audrey Snider Your Say

About the Authors: Afshan Akber is a Student of Master of Science in Nursing (MScN) at Aga Khan University School of Nursing and Midwifery Karachi, Pakistan and working as Registered Nurse at Aga Khan University Hospital. Salima Akbar is a Master of Science in Nursing (MScN) graduate from Aga Khan University School of Nursing and Midwifery Karachi, Pakistan and working as Instructor at Aga Khan University School of Nursing and Midwifery Karachi, Pakistan.

Working as a bedside nurse? Have you ever encountered a patient who suddenly collapses in front of you and you were unable to identify the reason behind it? The answer for this would significantly revolve around the knowledge, attitude, and practice of nurses while caring for the patients presenting alarming signs and the timely activation of a rapid response team. A rapid response team includes intensive care unit-trained nurses and doctors, who provide vigorous interventions for deteriorating patients (2).

Nurses’ Knowledge and Attitude Towards Caring Sick Patients

Nurses’ knowledge, and attitudes towards the care they are serving play a vibrant role in restoring patients’ life from deterioration and permanent disability. Identification of early warning signs, continuous monitoring, and observing a patient’s clinical condition are of prime importance (3). It has been observed that lack of confidence, missing early warning signs, and insufficient knowledge related to the disease process cause the crash situations. A nurse must have thorough decision-making skills and sound clinical judgment in critical conditions. (4).

 Modified early warning signs is a scoring scale that helps a nurse to make enlightened decisions for their patients. Furthermore, care plans are developed and interventions are executed according to the needs of the patient. Modified early warning signs score is classified into five components which are the Glasgow coma scale, blood pressure, heart rate, temperature, and respiratory rate (5). Fluctuation in any of the components signifies the nurse to do a prompt intervention.

Significance of Nurses’ Knowledge, Attitude and Skills

The synergy model was introduced by the American Association of Critical-Care Nurses in 1996 which highlighted patients’ necessities and nurses’ proficiencies. Eight characteristics of patients and nurses’ competencies are described which are essential while delivering care to the patients (6). This model is of great significance as this portrays the proficiencies of the nurses necessary while dealing with alarming patients. Moreover, these characteristics commit to the knowledge, attitude, and skills of nurses which concluded in accomplishing a constructive outcome and patient contentment.

Summarizing the entire content, nurses’ knowledge, attitude, and practice are pivotal when handling distressing patients. Moreover, incorporating the theories and scales would assist a nurse in activating a rapid response team and providing immediate interventions for declining patients. As advanced practice nurses, we can initiate teaching sessions for novice nurses about the warning signs in a patient and the activation of a rapid response team accordingly. In addition, enhancement in nurses’ knowledge would impact positively on nurses’ image, attitude, and quality of care while caring for the patients. To conclude, these steps would not only improve the image of the nurses but would also contribute to saving the lives of the patients in the hospital.

References

  1. Patient transfer from the intensive care unit to a general ward. (n.d.). RCNi | Information and inspiration for nurses. https://journals.rcni.com/nursing-standard/patient-transfer-from-the-intensive-care-unit-to-a-general-ward-ns.2017.e10670
  2. Olsen, S. L., Søreide, E., Hillman, K., & Hansen, B. S. (2019). Succeeding with rapid response systems–a never-ending process: a systematic review of how health-care professionals perceive facilitators and barriers within the limbs of the RRS. Resuscitation, 144, 75-90.
  3. Wood, C., Chaboyer, W., & Carr, P. (2019). How do nurses use early warning scoring systems to detect and act on patient deterioration to ensure patient safety? A scoping review. International journal of nursing studies, 94, 166-178.
  4. Krishnan, P. (2018). A philosophical analysis of clinical decision making in nursing. Journal of Nursing Education, 57(2), 73-78.
  5. Hester, J., Youn, T. S., Trifilio, E., Robinson, C. P., Babi, M. A., Ameli, P., … & Busl, K. M. (2021). The Modified Early Warning Score: a useful marker of neurological worsening but unreliable predictor of sepsis in the neurocritically ill—a retrospective cohort study. Critical care explorations, 3(5), e0386.
  6. Clayton, W. R. (2019). Overcoming barriers impeding nurse activation of rapid response teams. Online Journal of Issues in Nursing, 24(3), 1-10.
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