Hemodynamic monitoring.
Hemodynamic monitoring is one of the most exciting and potentially useful technologies in critical care. Hemodynamic monitoring, particularly the PAC, is the technology most often associated with the critical care unit. However, it is a difficult technology to master and is associated with clear (although infrequent) serious complications. It can also be associated with increased costs. With appropriate implementation, this technology can improve patient outcome and moderately reduce costs. Appropriate implementation is not easy with this technology. This type of technology should only be employed in hospitals willing to invest the education and quality monitoring to ensure its appropriate application. As a part of this infrastructure, physicians and nurses need frequent communication in terms of what is expected from this technology for each patient.
Ahrens
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Department of Critical Care, Barnes-Jewish Hospital, Washington University Medical Center, St. Louis, Missouri, USA.
D003422:Critical Care / Q000191:economics / Q000379:methods / Q000639:trends*; D003627:Data Interpretation, Statistical; D004509:Education, Nursing, Continuing / Q000191:economics; D006439:Hemodynamics; D006801:Humans; D007318:Inservice Training / Q000191:economics; D008991:Monitoring, Physiologic / Q000191:economics / Q000295:instrumentation / Q000379:methods / Q000451:nursing / Q000639:trends*; D015203:Reproducibility of Results