Podfour's podcast

Today we gain an insight into the ICU experience through the eyes of the patient. With us we have Jess Eels and Tony Wilson who are both nurses within our ICU but have also been on the other side as a patient. Their experiences are eye opening to us as nursing/medical staff and help to guide how we nurse our patients that are sedated and intubated.

Extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) is a technique which provides cardiac and respiratory support to people who's heart and lungs are unable to provide an adequate amount of gas exchange or perfusion to sustain life. Dr James Winearls along with ECMO CN Jacquie Whincup and fellow CN Lisa Mackie are around the table today to talk all things ECMO and to delve into the retrieval process.

Delirium is defined as a disturbance in mental abilities that results in confused thinking and reduced awareness of surroundings. In ICU we focus on prevention strategies instead of treatment of delirium. This episode we have Senior physiotherapist Lauren and CNC Niki to discuss strategies that are used to prevent delirium.

Diabetic ketoacidosis (DKA) is a serious diabetic complication that, when severe is often seen in Intensive care. ICU registrar Ivan Basic gives us an insight into this condition and how to manage it within the ICU.

If you do not work in the Intensive care or Emergency department, organ donation can be a foreign concept. Today we chat with Mandy who is the organ donation coordinator for the Gold Coast. Just in time for donation awareness week at the end of July.   https://donatelife.gov.au  

Part Two of this episode focuses on valvular surgery such as valve replacement/repair for issues such as stenosis and regurgitation. We also look at nursing care of a cardiothoracic patient post op.

In Part one of this episode i chat with Jucel a registered nurse within the ICU and Sylvio Provenzano one of GCUH's cardiothoracic surgeons about Coronary Artery Bypass Grafts (CABG), cannulation for bypass and the bypass machine itself. 

Shock results from inadequate perfusion tissues, leading to a decrease in the supply of oxygen and vital nutrients needed to maintain cellular metabolism. Dr Matt Brun and Jacquie Dwyer join us to chat about all the different classifications of shock and how we can identify and treat within the ICU.

Traumatic Brain Injury is an insult to the brain caused by trauma that results in neurological dysfunction. Sal and i have a chat to neurosurgical registrar Tom about TBI's and the management and prevention of secondary injury in the intensive care unit.

 Continuous Renal Replacement Therapy (CRRT) involves pumping blood through a dialysis circuit. When the blood comes in contact with this surface it tends to clot which is why we anticoagulate blood that is being dialysed. CRRT involves and extended period of treatment at slower blood pump rates and is therefore more likely to clot. Citrate has quickly become the gold standard for anticoagulation...

Acute respiratory failure is the inability of the respiratory system to maintain gas exchange and is a popular occurrence in the Intensive Care Environment. During this episode of the podcast myself (Kahli), Sally, James and Andi talk about the definition of respiratory failure, along with the different types (Type 1 and type 2) and the common disorders that can lead to respiratory failure. We als...

A pressure injury is any breach in skin integrity caused by the failure to relieve pressure, most commonly found in areas covering bony prominences. The Intensive Care Department (ICU) has the highest incidence rate of pressure injuries within the hospital system, due to a multitude of factors which ultimately decrease the skin integrity of these patients. Due to impaired skin integrity ICU patien...