Assessing Fall Risk and Reducing Falls in the Elderly More than one in four American adults 65 years of age and older have reported falling and one in five sustain a severe fall-related injury, including fractures and traumatic brain injuries (CDC, 2021). Falls account for 56% of injury-related...

Assessment and Management of Stroke In the United States, stroke is the fifth leading cause of death and the leading cause of disability (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention [CDC], 2023). Early identification, evaluation and treatment of stroke reduces motor and cognitive...

Atropine Sulfate Atropine is an anticholinergic drug that blocks the action of acetylcholine at parasympathetic sites in smooth muscle, secretory glands, and the central nervous system (CNS). It increases cardiac output and dries secretions. It is a competitive...

Disseminated Intravascular Coagulation (DIC) Disseminated intravascular coagulation (DIC) is a serious condition in which coagulation and fibrinolysis are unusually triggered, resulting in continuous clotting, bleeding and/or thrombosis (Leung, 2023). DIC, also known as consumption...

Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation (ECMO) Extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) is used for both cardiac and pulmonary failure when conventional measures (i.e., mechanical ventilation, intraaortic balloon pump) are inadequate to support life. While not a cure for the underlying...

Fundoscopic Exam A fundoscopy, also known as ophthalmoscopic, retinal, or funduscopic exam, is a test used to screen for eye disorders, injuries, and diseases. It can be one of the more challenging procedures performed during both routine physical examinations and...

Increased Intracranial Pressure (ICP) The cranium is a rigid bony structure that contains three main components: brain tissue, cerebrospinal fluid (CSF), and blood. Increased intracranial pressure (ICP) occurs when there is an increase in the volume of one or more components which...

Informed Consent Informed consent is a process of communication between a patient and a health care provider that results in the patient’s agreement to undergo a procedure or treatment. It is both a legal and ethical obligation. The provider educates the...

IV Fluids IV fluids are utilized for resuscitation, to replace fluid losses, and for maintenance hydration in patients who are not able or not allowed to drink water. Like all prescribed medications, IV fluids have benefits and risks. Fluid therapy should...

Managing COVID-19 ARDS in Adults Patients with severe COVID-19 pneumonia develop acute hypoxemic respiratory failure. While severely hypoxic COVID-19 patients meet the criteria for typical acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS), COVID-19 ARDS has unique characteristics...

Mental Health Assessment Mental health assessment is a critical component in the neurologic assessment and changes may have pathologic or pharmacologic causes. While the sequence of certain parts of this assessment is important, we must also be flexible in structuring...

Myocardial Infarction Myocardial infarction (MI) is defined as a clinical (or pathologic) event in the setting of myocardial ischemia in which there is evidence of myocardial injury (Anderson, Morrow, 2017; Thygesen, Alpert & Jaffe, 2018). The diagnosis is made...