A significant patient care event within a multidisciplinary care Essay

A significant patient care event within a multidisciplinary care setting - Essay Example The paper will focus on the events that led to her injury and the steps taken by the emergency department staff to stabilize her. After stabilization, the steps taken to manage the patient are discussed. I was on duty when Elizabeth reported to the emergency. She had an attendant, James, with her. Elizabeth was conscious but she had sustained severe injury and so was not in a condition to tell the details of what had happened to her. James was bruised but and had a bleeding tooth but had not sustained any serious injury as Elizabeth. James gave the history. He said that Elizabeth was driving while he was in the back seat when a deer came on the road. They were on a relatively silent country road on their way to the city. On seeing the deer, only a few meters from them, Elizabeth immediately reacted by steering the car towards the side of the road. In doing so, the car hit the side pavement. Since the car was being driven at 80km/h, the collision threw them forward in their seats. Jam es was not badly hurt but Elizabeth sustained serious head injuries. James said that Elizabeth had seizures before she lost consciousness. Panicking, he called for help. When the paramedics arrived, they immediately lay her on a stretcher, and transported Elizabeth and James both to the hospital. They gave James some shot that lessened the pain that he was experiencing. On reaching the hospital, John was examined and found not to have any serious injury. His bruises and bleeding from the teeth were addressed and managed. I was assigned as the critical care nurse for Elizabeth. The paramedics mentioned that Elizabeth had gained consciousness while on the way back; however she was not oriented in time and space. She had mobility of all her limbs but her speech was not clear and coherent. She was speaking broken words that made no sense. On measurement of her pupils, they were of 3mm in size, with intact papillary reflexes. On assessing her consciousness level, she was rated as 9 on th e Glasgow Coma Scale. According to Brooker and Nicol (2003), measurement of the GCS is the one of the most significant procedure the nurse carries out when a patient who is not well oriented in time and space comes. It is also the duty of the nurse to properly and accurately write down the results. Moreover, the nurse must be alert and continually observe the neurological condition of the patient. If there is any change, the nurse must report them immediately since quick interventions are required. Clinical decisions are dependent on the credibility and strength of these nursing interventions (Brooker & Nicol 2003). When assessing the consciousness, if the patient has a GCS rating of less than 7, the patient is said to be in a comatose state. Elizabeth, with a GCS rating of 9, was not labeled comatose. On carrying out the assessment and the standard protocol of ABC and stabilization of her vitals, it was seen that she was experiencing a quick decline of her neurological functioning. It is necessary to keep a track on the neurological condition of the patient. As mentioned above, such deterioration in the patient’s neurology is a matter of concern and should be duly addressed. Within a matter of a few seconds, Elizabeth’s speech started to deteriorate and she only made incomprehensible sounds now. Her eye