Yesterday, @yournursingeducator created a great post on Code Blue tips. @fobiesme asked a very legitimate question regarding how to proceed in patients who are s/p bypass or any open chest situation in the CVICU. This was something I wondered about myself even as someone who taught ACLS for the AHA at a point in my life. It was hard to find a solid answer. Fortunately, as of 2017, the Society of Thoracic Surgeons put forth this consensus statement and algorithm on how to handle cardiac arrest situations (ACLS) in the CVICU population. Since this is relatively new data (only 2 years ago), I understand that the CVICU nurses out there may not be familiar with nor using this particular algorithm on ACLS. What we did in my shop is that we printed this out with all its pretty colors, laminated it, and placed it on the code carts. Fortunately, this is entirely FREE!
-EJ
Society of Thoracic Surgeons Task Force on Resuscitation After Cardiac Surgery. The Society of Thoracic Surgeons Expert Consensus for the Resuscitation of Patients Who Arrest After Cardiac Surgery. Ann Thorac Surg. 2017 Mar;103(3):1005-1020. doi: 10.1016/j.athoracsur.2016.10.033. Epub 2017 Jan 22. PMID: 28122680.
Link to Article
Link to FULL FREE PDF
I have a huge post on CVICU patient management if you CLICK HERE.
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