Which action should the nurse plan to prevent aspiration in a high risk patient?
Show Aspiration of pharyngeal or gastric material into the lungs is a significant risk for many patients in the ICU. This may lead to the development of aspiration pneumonia, which can cause serious complications. The American Association of Critical Care Nurses (AACN)recently updated a Practice Alert called Prevention of Aspiration in Adults. By implementing these measures nurses can use to keep patients’ airways clear, reduce the risk of aspiration, and prevent subsequent pneumonia, with a goal toward improving patient outcomes and reducing hospital costs. Some of the AACN practice recommendations:
Additionally, nurses are patient advocates. Even though they aren’t directly responsible for a patient prior to admission, critical care nurses should recognize the importance of and advocate for the best possible treatment of their patients before they arrive in the ICU. A recent article, Aspiration Pneumonitis and Pneumonia, discusses the value of suctioning to remove aspirate when stabilizing patients’ airways in the field and in the ER, so as to avoid the development of aspiration pneumonia days later. Nurses should always stay abreast of the newest guidelines and recommendations so that they are certain to provide the highest quality care for their patients. Reducing the prevalence of aspiration pneumonia will lead to shorter hospital stays, less use of antibiotics, and a decrease in mortality for their patients. Editor's Note: This blog was originally published in May 2016. It has been re-published with additional up-to-date content. Topics: Airway management Which actions does the nurse perform to prevent aspiration in this patient?Nursing Interventions for Risk For Aspiration. Keep suctioning equipment at the bedside. ... . Performing suctioning as necessary. ... . Keep the head of the bed elevated after feeding. ... . Implement other feeding techniques. ... . Consult with speech therapy. ... . Follow diet modifications. ... . Position properly.. What is aspiration risk?Aspiration is when something enters your airway or lungs by accident. It may be food, liquid, or some other material. This can cause serious health problems, such as pneumonia. Aspiration can happen when you have trouble swallowing normally. Trouble swallowing is called dysphagia.
Which action will the nurse take when preparing a patient for thoracentesis?Sitting while leaning forward over a pillow. Rationale: During a thoracentesis a needle is inserted into the intercostal space, so the nurse should assist the client to sit at the edge of the bed while leaning forward with their arms supported on a bedside table and a pillow or folded towel.
What is the best treatment for aspiration pneumonia?The choice of antibiotics for community-acquired aspiration pneumonia is ampicillin-sulbactam, or a combination of metronidazole and amoxicillin can be used. In patients with penicillin allergy, clindamycin is preferred.
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