Intuitive knowledge is a relative component of the critical thinking process. Intuition is discussed along with examples of how nurses have demonstrated intuitive thinking in the trauma setting. Recommendations are offered for how the mentor trauma nurse can foster an awareness and the development of intuition in the novice practitioner.

Clinical Competence↗

PubMedDate not supplied

Pregnancy after a TRAM flap procedure: principles of nursing care.

Breast cancer is the most common malignancy in women in the United States and affects more than 200,000 women annually. The incidence increases exponentially with age from the 3rd to the 5th decade of life. Many women are now choosing to have a more natural breast reconstruction concomitantly with their mastectomy. A TRAM (transverse rectus abdominis myocutaneous) flap is a procedure to reconstruct the breast mound using autologous tissue. Women of childbearing age who have undergone a TRAM flap may safely consider pregnancy after such a procedure. The principles of nursing care for pregnant women who have undergone a TRAM flap surgery are presented in this article. A case report of pregnancy after a TRAM flap is included.

Adult↗

PubMedDate not supplied

Pulmonary contusions: management and implications for trauma nurses.

TOPIC: Pathophysiology of pulmonary contusions, current methods for assessing blunt chest trauma patients, pulmonary parameters and diagnostic methodology, and innovative ventilatory treatment. PURPOSE: To heighten awareness of pulmonary contusion, the treatment and potential sequelae. SOURCES: Published information and clinical experience. CONCLUSION: A pulmonary contusion is a common potentially lethal chest injury seen in this country. Trauma clinicians should have heightened awareness about this injury because the injury is often overlooked and the clinicians frequently do not comprehend the mechanisms causing pulmonary contusions.

Contusions↗