Description

In this book CCU refers to critical care unit, which may be synonymous to Intensive Care Unit. Critical care unit is defined as a specially designed and equipped facility staffed by skilled personnel to provide effective and safe care for patients with life threatening or potentially life threatening problems. Critical care nurses provide care to restore health, alleviate pain and suffering, preserve and uphold the rights and dignity of the individuals and assist those patients in whom the salvageability is impossible, to a humane and dignified death. Nursing is aimed at diagnosis and treatment of human responses to actual and potential health problems. Maslow’s hierarchy of needs provides for a route to holistic care. It allows the client to be placed on health-illness continuum and to incorporate the health models in meeting the needs of the patient in critical care unit. This book focuses on total aspects of care of an adult patient with selected critical illnesses. Some of the common conditions are discussed in detail. This book is organized according to different body systems with necessary medical knowledge as the background, while emphasizing the human responses such as fear, pain, sensory deprivation and sensory overload and their management through application of Nursing process. Chapter on Pharmacology has touched upon briefly the drugs used in CCU. As these drugs undergo rapid revolutions, reader is expected to check on the latest information by the Manufacturer or detailed and latest work on pharmacology. As for procedure carried out in CCU, the institution’s policy, standing orders, protocol and the technical facility available are to be taken into consideration. This book is intended for the students of basic and posts basic programs, nurse practitioners in CCU and educators to serve as a reference on essential aspects of critical care nursing. Nursing care plan is incorporated into most of the conditions. Different formats of care plan are used to give an opportunity for the reader to be familiar with them.