Fast Facts for the Critical Care Nurse

by Dina Hewett PhD, RN, CCRN, NEA-BC

Overview

This newly updated, quick-access guide for critical care nurses covers the most common admitting diagnoses and reviews their causes, signs and symptoms, and interventions. Critical care nursing requires astute assessment, adept communication, and the ability to multitask, as well as a high degree of adaptability. In the ICU, patient status and plan of care change constantly, presenting multifaceted problems for nurses and healthcare providers. This authoritative resource, with bulleted, bite-sized content, provides information to the busy ICU nurse in a heartbeat.

Fast Facts for the Critical Care Nurse, Second Edition, has been updated with the most current evidence-based guidelines and standards. Now organized by body system, this reference presents the latest treatment modalities and provides quick access to lab values and hemodynamic parameters. Part I introduces the foundations of critical care. Part II progresses by body system to cover common procedures and interventions. Part III covers patient- and family-centered care, discussing palliative directives and organ donation.

New to the Second Edition:
• Seven completely new chapters
• Chapter reorganization by body system
• Updated to include newest treatment modalities
• Speedy access to appendices with common lab values, hemodynamic parameters, IV medications, and EKG rhythm examples

Key Features:
• Provides quick access to essential information needed on a daily basis
• Includes Fast Facts boxes to help guide the reader
• Authored by a respected nurse leader, educator, and AACN/Wharton Executive Leadership Fellow

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780826177216
Publisher:	Springer Publishing Company
Publication date:	11/15/2019
Series:	Fast Facts
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	300
File size:	4 MB

About the Author

Dina Hewett, PhD, RN, CCRN, NEA-BC, received her BSN from Brenau University, MSN from Georgia Southern University, and PhD in higher education from the University of Georgia.

Editorial Reviews

Reviewer: Cynthia Cummings, EdD, RN, CHSE, CNE (University of North Florida Brooks College of Health)
Description: This book on the basics of critical care is full of algorithms and information about a variety of critical care areas. There are many diagrams and supplemental material on not only patient care, but also certification and self-care. The first edition was published in 2011.
Purpose: The purpose is to provide information and guidance to new nurses and students in the critical care area. This book presents needed, current information, as well as material on working in a critical care area, such as self-care, quality, and safety. It also discusses trauma and transplant.
Audience: The audience is ICU nurses, those who are new and those who want additional information. The author has worked in the ICU for many years and is certified in critical care.
Features: The book covers many areas in critical care in a succinct and credible fashion. The book presents the basics about the critical care environment, certification, and specialty areas. The book then divides into systems and presents new material on neurological cases, shock, trauma, multiple organ dysfunction syndrome, burns, and transplant nursing. In addition, organ donation, withdrawal, and palliative care are discussed. The book is well-organized, factual, and easy to follow. There are many diagrams and ECGs, laboratory values, and parameters.
Assessment: This is a wonderful, easy-to-follow book that is helpful to all ICU nurses. It contains many snippets of important information and is easy to use. This update is needed, as it includes more information on self-care, certification, trauma, transplant, and organ donation. As an ICU nurse, I would have loved to have a book like this to carry with me. It contains important laboratory values, hemodynamic parameters, and ventilator information. I would highly recommend this to all new ICU nurses.

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