title: Critical care in Nicaragua.
abstract: Critical care nursing in Nicaragua is vastly different than critical care practiced in the United States. The current status of critical care nursing in Nicaragua is challenging at best. Medical personnel do not have access to arterial blood gases, blood cultures, and capillary blood glucose monitoring. The strengths and challenges present in Nicaraguan critical care has made the nursing staff rely on keen and astute nursing assessment of their patients. Due to the lack of technology in Nicaragua, creativity and improvising are a must in caring for a critically ill patient. However, the concerns and issues facing the nurses in Nicaragua are very similar to those experienced by critical care nurses in the United States. Critical care nursing in Nicaragua is indeed true nursing at its finest.
authors.affiliation: Duquesne University, School of Nursing, Clinical Nurse II, Western Pennsylvania Hospital Pittsburgh, USA.
authors.forename: L C
authors.initials: LC
authors.lastname: Simko
mesh_terms: D003422:Critical Care / Q000379:methods* / Q000458:organization & administration*; D006801:Humans; D013677:Medical Laboratory Science; D009527:Nicaragua; D009730:Nursing Assessment / Q000379:methods; D013041:Specialties, Nursing / Q000193:education / Q000379:methods* / Q000458:organization & administration*; D016746:Transcultural Nursing