Tag: communication
Poor Hospital Design Has an Impact on Staff, Patients, and Healthcare
Many hospitals in which I have worked have struggled with finances over the last 5 years. There has often been a ban on capital investment on new physical infrastructure projects even extended to repairs in some circumstances.... read more
A New ICU Equipment Diagram… But is it Art?
It is well established that the Arts have a clear contribution to make in the delivery of an improved healthcare experience for patients, service users and staff. Southmead Hospital (part of North Bristol NHS Trust) has a... read more
Would A Change in Nomenclature for ICUs Promote Less Aggressive Care?
The term "intensive care unit" (ICU) was originally meant to refer to the intensity of the resources allocated to patient care. Today, however, ICU refers more to the intensity of the interventions undergone by the patient.... read more
The Patient, The Whole Patient and Nothing But The Patient
In this short opinion piece, career and consumer advisor Belinda MacLeod-Smith challenges us to consider crucial elements of whole patient care, and how they can be impacted by limiting factors. Caring for someone with ongoing,... read more
The Social Media Index as an Indicator of Quality for Emergency Medicine Blogs
The Social Media Index’s correlation with multiple quality evaluation instruments over time supports the hypothesis that it is associated with overall Web site quality. It can play a role in guiding individuals to high-quality... read more
The Power of Social Media in Medicine and Medical Education
Social media is changing the ways that patients interact with healthcare providers and the healthcare system. It is increasingly common for patients to use information technology to gain access to information and control... read more
Implementing a Standardized Nurse-driven Rounding Protocol in a Trauma-surgical ICU
We instituted several interventions in our trauma and surgical ICU aimed at improving communication and teamwork between RNs and MDs. Informal feedback indicated greater satisfaction among RNs and MDs with the working environment.... read more
Communicating with Conscious and Mechanically Ventilated Critically Ill Patients
Ventilator-dependent patients in the ICU often experience difficulties with one of the most basic human functions, namely communication, due to intubation. Although various assistive communication tools exist, these are infrequently... read more
Organ and Tissue Donation Education for Critical Care Residents
Qualitative data corroborated that residents need more exposure to clinical cases, especially regarding DCD donors. A standardized education curriculum would be beneficial for all residents within the ICU. Developing a better... read more
Can Better Teamwork in the ICU Save Lives?
Effective teamwork is the goal of any workplace. But few settings offer higher stakes than the fast-paced, life-or-death environment of a hospital intensive care unit (ICU). Team collaboration in ICUs is an area ripe for... read more
The Practice of Respect in the ICU
Although "respect" and "dignity" are intuitive concepts, little formal work has addressed their systematic application in the ICU setting. After convening a multidisciplinary group of relevant experts, we undertook a review... read more
Social Media in Critical Care: What’s All the Fuss About?
The way we communicate and learn has been revolutionized by technology. Almost all of us carry a smartphone these days, so we are never more than a phone call, message or text away from family, friends and colleagues. This... read more
The Answer My Friend is Blowin’ in your Nose – High Flow Nasal Oxygen
High flow nasal oxygen is a novel device that actively humidifies and heats air to make flows of up to 60 liters a minutes tolerable. These incredibly high flows are important, because in order to provide 100% fiO2 to patients... read more
A Pilot Study of Eye-Tracking Devices in ICU
Eye-tracking devices have been suggested as a means of improving communication and psychosocial status among patients in the intensive care unit (ICU). This study was undertaken to explore the psychosocial impact and communication... read more
Words that Heal: ICU Journals at Penn Help Patients and Staff
After years of planning, Penn Presbyterian began offering the journals in January to help prevent post-intensive care syndrome or PICS, a set of physical and emotional problems gaining attention as more people survive an... read more
Establishing a Relationship of Trust and Care
An admission to the intensive care unit (ICU) is often a traumatic experience for both patients and families. Although members of the critical care team are specially trained to provide care and treatment requiring close,... read more
Solutions to Alleviate Burnout
A range of factors drives clinician burnout, including workload, time pressure, clerical burden, and professional isolation. Clerical burden, especially documentation of care and order entry, is a major driver of clinician... read more
