Electronic Letters to:
|
|
eLetters: Electronic letters published:
-
![[Read eLetter]](/icons/misc/sectionDOWN.gif)
Early recognition-rapid intervention
- Theocharis Chr Kyziridis (19 April 2006)
|
|
|||
|
Theocharis Chr Kyziridis, RN 41110 University Hospital of Larissa
Send letter to journal:
theocharis_kyziridis{at}yahoo.gr Theocharis Chr Kyziridis
|
Nurses constitute a sine qua non member of the interdisciplinary health care team. As such their role is critical, especially in early recognition of patients physical and mental status, and in rapid intervention, mainly due to the fact that they spend many hours with the patient. Delirium is considered to be a major negative prognostic factor for both medical and surgical elderly hospitalized patients, cntributing to poor outcome and increased hospital stay of the patients. Despite these it is still underestimated by physicians and nurses, which attribute delirium semiology and symptomatology either to normal aging process, or to dementia, depression or n some cases- severe anxiety disorder. Two factors are essential for the fullfilment of the critical role a nurse can play in the prevention of delirium in elderly hospitalized patients. The first one is the contiuous observation of early or subtle changes in mental status, behavioral pattern, level of consciousness or sleep-wake cycle. The second one is the scientific proof of the observations using standardised rating scales for the identification of the symptoms. Every observation should be carefully written down and an aetiological relationship with nosological entities should vigorously be searched. No doubt that a systematic application of such a process could lead to a substantial reduction in deliria cases. Unfortunately it demands personal time, reading and willingness for systematized work. Are there many who want to proceed? |
|||