Acute Myocardial Infarction - Dissertation Example

Mrs. Harris, 75, was brought by ambulance to the Accident and Emergency department accompanied by her husband and two grown daughters who had followed by car. She was admitted at 05:37 with a suspected AMI. Her associated symptoms were what she described as a sore feeling in her chest and a noticeable difficulty in breathing. With her consent, she was immediately transferred to the resuscitation bay where a cardiac monitor was attached. This monitor can be used for a variety of purposes, providing useful information regarding a patient’s vital signs – blood pressure, heart rate, respiratory rate and level of oxygen saturation.

The registered nurse helped to alleviate some of the patient’s and family’s anxiety by explaining to them what the purpose of the cardiac monitor was as well as diverting their attention onto the dissemination of information as she attempted to make an initial assessment of Mrs. Harris’ condition. As part of this initial assessment, the registered nurse asked the patient and her husband about her current physical symptoms, but also about the family medical history and the patient’s lifestyle.

This subjective information is necessary to make appropriate decisions regarding the patient’s immediate and ongoing care. The psychological assessment helps caregivers effectively address the patient’s present emotional status as compared to ‘normal’ while social information is helpful in assessing how the patient will respond to both their illness and treatment options (Joint Commission, 2007). Other lifestyle information, just as smoking or drinking habits, is necessary to understand potential risk factors.

In this case, Mrs. Harris indicated that she used to smoke as many as 15 cigarettes a day, a habit she maintained for approximately 30 years, although she had given it up more than three years previous. In addition, there was no record of cardiac illness within Mrs. Harris’ history.