Continuing Education Course Offerings

"End-tidal CO₂ Monitoring and Resuscitation": Tom Ahrens, DNS, RN, CCRN, CS. Nursing and EMT credits (1 hour CE) . Biomed certificate also available.

Measurement of the end tidal carbon dioxide (EtCO₂) value, coupled with use of the continuous, real-time measure of EtCO₂ via the capnography waveform, or capnograph, provides a powerful diagnostic tool in the evaluation and treatment of a variety of clinical situations. The primary focus of this presentation is on the use of both the EtCO₂ value and the capnogram in the evaluation and treatment of patients experiencing potentially life-threatening resuscitative events, however a limited selection of other capnography clinical applications is also shared. In addition, the speaker offers guidelines about how to use EtCO₂ to guide decisions about patient selection for resuscitation treatment, and secondarily, how use of this information helps to channel communication efforts around end-of-life issues.

Objectives:

 1.  Define rationale for, and common uses of, capnography as a diagnostic tool to address clinical practice issues in resuscitation.

 2.  Describe how to use capnography to improve patient outcomes in resuscitation, and make decisions about patient selection for resuscitative care.

 3.  Review selected applications for capnography outside the realm of resuscitation.

 

 

"How to Succeed with Defibrillation, Cardioversion, and Transcutaneous Pacing": M. Ann Anderson, RN, MS: Nursing and EMT credits (1 hour CE). Biomed certificate also available.

Chances for successful use of defibrillation, synchronized cardioversion, and transcutaneous pacing therapy can be improved when clinicians both understand the technology and how to apply the therapy to minimize risks of failure. This course is designed to provide practical tips, knowledge of which will enable the clinician to defibrillate, cardiovert, and pace with confidence.

Objectives:

 1.  Identify equipment variables affecting success with defibrillation, cardioversion, and transcutaneous pacing.

 2.  Describe patient treatment variables affecting success with defibrillation, cardioversion, and transcutaneous pacing.

 

"Tiered Resuscitation: New Standards for Enhancing ACLS Outcomes with AEDs": Lorie Utech, RN, BSN: Nursing credits (1 hour CE). Biomed certificate also available.

Survival to hospital discharge has remained at about 15% (average across all departments) following in-hospital sudden cardiac arrest (SCA) for the last forty years, despite widespread adoption of the American Heart Association’s (AHA) guidelines and standards for resuscitation practice. The AHA acknowledges long delays to defibrillation with traditional practice of advanced cardiac life support (ACLS) personnel as the sole providers of defibrillation. According to the AHA, delivering the first defibrillation shock within the recommended 3 minutes of patient collapse can be achieved only by adding another tier of basic life support (BLS) defibrillation capability to augment ACLS care. Given advances in automated external defibrillation (AED) technology, this goal of equipping BLS-trained first responders with defibrillation capability to achieve the 3 minute defibrillation goal can now be realized, and is accompanied with a growing body of evidence that patient outcomes can be enhanced as a result.

Objectives:

 1.  Describe the clinical rationale for use of AEDs to enhance the traditional ACLS response for SCA patients.

 2.  Summarize clinical practice recommendations from the AHA, JCAHO and EMTALA guidelines to improve resuscitation responses in the hospital and ambulatory care settings.

 3.  Describe how to develop a response model cost-effectively with BLS responders using AEDs and ACLS responders serving an adjunct role in BLS first-response areas.

 

 

"Transcutaneous Pacing Made Easy: Indications, Use and Troubleshooting": Tom Ahrens, DNS, RN, CCRN, CS. Nursing credits only (1 hour CE) (no EMT or biomed certifications).

Use of transcutaneous pacing (TCP) is an important emergency resuscitation tool for certain patients with conditions related to inadequate cardiac pump performance. Indications for TCP include bradycardia associated with unstable hemodynamics, temporary pacing prior to insertion of a tranvenous pacer, overdrive pacing, e.g., in response to failed cardioversion, and complete heart block. Following an overview of indications for TCP use, Dr. Ahrens offers a description of how TCP works, along with 7 easy steps to performing TCP with confidence, and tips for troubleshooting "failure to capture" and "failure to sense" conditions.