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Biomedical subjects

J A Ragsdale

Publications and source records attributed to J A Ragsdale.

7 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMedDate not supplied

Needle safety in an endoscopy unit.

Personnel in GI Endoscopy units are at higher risk than health care workers in general for exposure to Hepatitis B and Human Immunodeficiency Virus. Occupational Safety and Health Administration Standards require personal protective equipment including gloves, goggles, masks, water-impervious gowns, shoe covers, sharps containers, and biohazardous waste containers to be readily available. Special hazards in endoscopy make staff compliance both essential and challenging. Contaminated needle sticks are a common occupational injury in this setting, and one GI unit has developed several safeguards to increase staff's protection. These safeguards include inserting all intravenous lines in the safest, most accessible site: the right forearm; hanging IV fluids on all patients whose procedures are done in the radiology suite; and employing the needle recapping system that is cost-effective and easy to use in the endoscopy setting.

Endoscopy↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Expandable esophageal wire stents.

Esophageal endoprostheses or stents have been used successfully for more than 100 years in patients with esophageal or gastroesophageal (GE) junction cancer. In recent years, many manufacturers have produced these stents in various styles and materials, but the most innovative design is the expandable wire mesh stent. At Virginia Mason Medical Center, The Schneider Wallstent (Minneapolis, MN) and the Wilson Cook Z stent (Winston-Salem, NC) have been placed in a series of patients with obstructing or fistulizing neoplasms of the esophagus, GE junction, stomach, lung, or mediastinum. The nursing care of these patients requires meticulous attention to airway maintenance and oral suction. Stents cannot be repositioned after total deployment; thus, the nurse plays an important role in assuring correct placement. During and after the endoscopy, the nurse must be alert to any signs of possible complications, including bleeding, perforation, dyspnea from tracheal compression, and stent malposition. Several case studies are presented in this article, noting the patients' histories, indications for stent placement, and nursing care pre-, intra-, and postprocedure.

Adult↗
PubMedDate not supplied

The hidden illness of endoscopy patients: mental health disorders, Part I.

Because nearly half of all adults experience some mental health disorders in their lifetime, many endoscopy patients must have psychiatric problems along with their gastrointestinal (GI) illnesses. In addition, all patients undergoing an endoscopic procedure experiences some degree of apprehension and worry; anxiety itself is a major factor in most mental illnesses. Endoscopy nurses are very good at establishing rapport quickly with patients and learning about the patient's health history from all the available sources of information. These nurses spend much of their time teaching, listening, reassuring, and caring for people undergoing GI procedure, and these same skills are an important part of the care in mental health disorders. A series of case studies of GI patients in a busy endoscopy department document and summarize the mental health disorder each experienced and the pertinent care given by the GI nurse during an endoscopy or gastric laboratory procedure. Although it is inappropriate for endoscopy nurses to attempt to diagnose major psychiatric disease or provide psychiatric interventions for these patients, their nursing care and reassurance enable the patients to successfully complete their GI procedures.

Adult↗