| Critical Care |
Managing the most critically ill patients with expertise and care, the nurses in the Division of Critical Care at St. Joseph’s Regional Medical Center specialize in assuring that the patients and their families get a state-of-the-art healing experience. Working in partnership with physicians and other members of the health care team, our nurses function as the autonomous coordinators of the complex care required by their patients. As one of the largest critical care divisions in New Jersey, we manage multiple complex and challenging cases, including those patients being treated in our large interventional cardiology program, our Joint Commission certified stroke program, and patients admitted trough our large and busy Level II trauma center emergency department. The Division of Critical Care has been the recipient of a number of clinical awards including one from NJ Hospital Association for 2 years with no ventilator associated pneumonia, numerous American Heart Association awards for management of MI and CHF, a Health and Human Services federal award for organ donation, and a hospital pressure ulcer management program excepted for presentation at the first NDNQI conference in Las Vegas in 2007. The division is comprised of 7 separate units, including a Medical Intensive Care Unit, an Intermediate Respiratory Care Unit, a Cardiac Care Unit, a Post Interventional Cardiac Telemetry Unit, a Cardio-Thoracic Recovery Unit, a Post Cardio-Thoracic Telemetry Unit, and a Surgical Intensive Care Unit. Committed to the Magnet tenets of Nursing practice, the Division of Critical Care has implemented many innovations to assure our continued leadership in high quality critical care including:
Director – Christine Cutugno, PhD, RN, CCRN Open Heart Recovery In our 7-bed Open Heart Recovery Room (OHRR), we manage some of the most critically ill patients in the hospital. OHRR staff are offered frequent educational programs to maintain their level of skill and knowledge of the latest surgical interventions Surgical procedures are admitted to OHRR post open heart surgery for CABG, valve repair or replacement, MAZE procedures for arrhythmias, and aortic and ventricular aneurysm repairs Staffing is 1:1 until stable, then 2:3 until transfer. Back to top Surgical Intensive Care Unit Patient diagnoses in our 8-bed Surgical ICU (SICU) include multiple trauma, general surgery, vascular surgery, neurosurgery, orthopedic surgery, GYN surgery, necrotizing fasciitis, and septic shock. Our RNs serve as resources and mentors to their peers throughout the hospital in the provision of care to neurosurgical patients. Additionally, nursing staff receives specialized training in the care of complex trauma patients. Staffing is 1:1 to 1:3, depending on patient acuity. The interdisciplinary team has received multiple awards for their commitment to and promotion of excellence in organ donation. Unit-based quality programs focus on enhancing patient outcomes through decreasing complications associated with higher acuity. Back to top Coronary Care Unit Our 12-bed Coronary Care Unit (CCU) is a proud participant in the American Heart Association’s “Get With the Guidelines” program, a national initiative to deliver state of the art care to patients with AMIs and CHF. This program assures that all patients experiencing a MI or in CHF will receive evidence based care to treat these diseases. St. Joseph’s has received multiple AHA awards for compliance with these guidelines. St. Joseph’s Regional Medical Center’s CCU RNs are vital members of the hospital-wide code team whose experience with resuscitation and stabilization contribute to positive patient outcomes. Patient diagnoses in the CCU include myocardial infarction, cardiogenic shock, post cardiac/respiratory arrest, dysrhythmias, need for Intra-aortic balloon pump, septic shock, and acute stroke. Our staffing ratios are maintained at 1:1 to 1:3, depending on patient acuity Back to top Medical Intensive Care Unit In our 18-bed Medical Intensive Care Units (MICU), our patient diagnoses include respiratory failure requiring ventilatory support, acute stroke, severe sepsis/ septic shock, GI bleed, hepatic failure, and post cardiac/ respiratory arrest. The MICU is on the Beacon Journey toward recognition of excellence in critical care and promotion of patient safety within a healthy work environment. We are proud of the work our interdisciplinary team has done to care for our patients including the implementation of evidence-based practice standards to virtually eliminated ventilator-associated pneumonia in the unit. The MICU RNs serve as expert critical care nursing consultants throughout the hospital as members of the Rapid Response Team. Our nurses have made a commitment to certification and showcase their credentials on the “Wall of Honor” outside the unit, demonstrating their ongoing quest for excellence in provision of care to patients and families. With excellent staffing ratios ranging from 1:1 to 1:3, depending on patient acuity, St. Joseph’s Regional Medical Center’s MICU is an exciting place to work. Back to top Intermediate Respiratory Care Unit In our Intermediate Respiratory Care Unit (IRCU) there are 16 beds with patient diagnoses include asthma, pneumonia, prolonged ventilatory management, and COPD (emphysema). Recognizing that the family is an integral part of wellness, the staff focus on provision of care that incorporates the patient’s loved ones throughout the entire hospital stay. IRCU nurses serve many roles from consultants to peers throughout the hospital regarding care of patients with tracheostomy tubes. RNs on the unit developed strategies for incorporation of ventilator-associated pneumonia prevention standards into care of patients in the IRCU and in the intensive care units. As an intermediate care unit, staffing is maintained at a 1:5 to 1:6 ratio, with supplemental PCAs. The IRCU nursing staff is consistently recognized for their commitment to excellent teamwork by students and employees throughout the organization. Back to top Regan 5 North Post Interventional Telemetry St. Joseph’s Regional Medical Center’s Post Interventional Cardiac Telemetry 44-bed unit participates in many of the new product trials inherent in this rapidly evolving specialty. New medications, new uses for old medications, new vessel and skin closure devices post cardiac catheterization, and multi-center research studies all contribute to making this unit an interesting and challenging place to work. The Post Interventional Cardiac Telemetry unit is successfully participating in the highly successful national project to manage AMI and CHF according to the latest evidence based guidelines and has been the recipient of multiple awards for these efforts. Patient diagnoses include post–angioplasty, post-stent placement; unstable angina, post MI, management of complex arrhythmias, post cardiac cath with vessel disease, CHF, pacemaker insertion, cardioversion or ICD placement, electrophysiology studies, and management of hypertension. Staffing is maintained at a 1:5 to 1:6 ratio. Back to top Regan 4 North Post Cardiothoracic Telemetry In our Post Open Heart/Telemetry Unit (R4N) there are 33 beds. The unit located at R4N receives patients post cardiac surgery, as well as patients with multiple other cardiac diagnoses. Staff receives additional and ongoing orientation topics due to the high acuity of the post open heart patients Patient diagnoses include Post CABG or Valve replacement, arrhythmia management, management of hypertension, unstable angina, CHF, post MI, pacemaker insertion, cardioversion, or ICD placement. Staffing is maintained at a 1:5 to 1:6 ratio. Back to top |
