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About the Author
Judy
Boehm, RN, MSN, is a cardiac clinical nurse specialist living now
in Bradenton, Florida.
Beginning in 1975 she worked
as CNS for the cardiac units at Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center
in Lebanon, New Hampshire, retiring in early 2006. Since the
formation of the CPR Committee in 1983, she was active in
establishing policies and procedures for resuscitations, translating
resuscitation research into practice, selection of/training in
emergency equipment, life support education, and CPR data
collection/ analysis.
Judy received her MSN from University of Alabama, and
her BSN from Case Western Reserve University. She enjoys
playing golf with her husband, walking her Golden Retriever, and
learning about tropical plants.
email the author: judyboehm@gmail.com
ZOLL Medical
Corporation Corporate Headquarters 269 Mill
Road Chelmsford, MA USA 01824-4105 tel.
(800)348-9011 fax (978)421-0025
email: info@zoll.com website: www.zoll.com |
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Welcome to Code
Communications, ZOLL's online
newsletter for hospital clinicians interested in the field of
resuscitation. Each month we will explore a new topic in the field
with an emphasis on practical solutions for changing practice and
improving outcomes.
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2 AED Plus Training Kits:
Leisa Kelly
Our Lady of the Lake Hospital
Baton Rouge, LA
Linda Sifuentes
Scott and White U. Med. Center
Round Rock, TX
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Results from March, 2008, with 59 respondents:
| True or False |
% who answered correctly |
1. Time to defibrillation in hospitals is longer than 2 minutes in approximately 2/3 of inpatients
CORRECT ANSWER: False. It's longer than 2 minutes in 1/3 of inpatients. See discussion of Chan's recent article in this Code Communications.
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3% |
2. There is a graded inverse association between survival and longer times to defibrillation in the hospital.
CORRECT ANSWER: True
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87% |
3. Having an VF/VT arrest during the day (vs night) is associated with a longer time to defibrillation.
CORRECT ANSWER: False
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77% |
4. The survival to discharge rate for inpatients undergoing resuscitation is higher during the night compared to the day/evening
CORRECT ANSWER: False |
75% |
5. If an inpatient is in an unmonitored bed, VF/VT arrest is associated with a longer time to defibrillation
CORRECT ANSWER: True |
97% |
6. Persons in VF/VT arrests outside the hospital who are resuscitated with AEDs can have a 50% survival to discharge rate
CORRECT ANSWER: True
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77% |
7. Patients in VF/VT arrests inside the hospital have a 50% discharge to survival rate
CORRECT ANSWER: False. According to the National Registry of CPR data, 36% of adults and 29.2% of children with VF/VT arrests are discharged. |
58% |
8. If VF is defibrillated within 4 minutes, the conversion rate is much higher than if performed later
CORRECT ANSWER: True |
95% |
9. The VF waveform can be used to tell when defibrillation will be most successful
CORRECT ANSWER: True |
55% |
10. More inpatients in arrest are found in VF/VT rather than asystole and PEA
CORRECT ANSWER: False |
27% |
11. The incidence of VF as the initial rhythm in cardiac arrest is increasing
CORRECT ANSWER: False |
20% |
12. The discharge rate for inpatients found in VF/VT is higher than for those found in asystole/PEA
CORRECT ANSWER: True |
92% |
13. Half of all in-hospital arrests occur in an intensive care unit
CORRECT ANSWER: True |
43% |
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