ICU

After you’ve worked in acute care for a bit, perhaps you’d like to try working in the ICU.

You might enjoy ICU if you have high attention to detail, enjoy collaborating with a team of healthcare professionals, and are confident and calm under pressure.

Some people prefer ICU to working on the floors because of lower nursing to patient ratios and monitors constantly showing the patient’s vitals. Therapy in this setting also tend to be cotreats with PT or with a rehab aide. ICU specific knowledge is required to work in this setting.

Respiratory system

Importance of FiO2 readings. Check with RT for titrating O2 during your session.

• Nasal cannula
• High flow nasal cannula
• BiPAP
• Trach mask
• Ventilator

Level of sedation

• RASS scores
• titrating sedation 30 min before your session
  • Agitation, figting the ventilator

Blood pressure

-pressors (link to green/yellow/red light)

Lines

• hard stop in general for femoral lines besides a femoral art line

Cognition

CAM ICU

General treatment session

Can patient tolerate head of bed elevated first. Does blood pressure drop.

Trunk control with bed raised can inform you about how they might do at edge of bed.

Is patient responding at all to commands? agitated?