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Core Value: Adaptability
As a team, the CCU nurses must possess adaptability. The patients cared for in our CCU include medical, surgical, respiratory, and cardiac. At any given time the nurse may be presented with a critically ill patient who falls into one or more of these categories.
In addition to caring for his/her own patients, the CCU nurse is also part of the Code Blue and Rapid Response teams (RRT). In this role, the nurse not only has the ability to effect change on her own patients but patients throughout the hospital. When responding to the Code Blue call, the CCU RN is responsible to direct the code until a physician arrives. She also acts as a resource to the primary nurse and facilitates a move to the CCU if necessary. When a Rapid Response is called, the nurse is responding to an unknown situation. The nurse must be proficient in assessing a patient, recognizing symptomology, critical thinking and communication. It could encompass something as simple as assisting the primary nurse with assessing the patient's status or administering physician-ordered treatments to avert future emergencies. The call could also develop into a Code Stroke or Code STEMI. The CCU nurse must be adaptable to the circumstances that present themselves.
Both the Code Blue and Rapid Response calls have an evaluation process attached to them that is consistently reviewed. The staff evaluations have been overwhelmingly positive with statements such as, "What great teamwork", "What a relief to see the nurse coming", and "It's great to have a resource when a patient is in trouble." In addition, the hospital has recognized the CCU team for their parts in the code blue and RRTs by awarding the unit with the Orion Award on two separate occasions. The RRT of Ocean Medical Center also has been featured in two articles: one in vol. 7, issue 25 of Advance for Nurses and on in the Jan. 13, 2008 edition of the Sunday Star-Ledger.
The CCU team maintains competency in several areas to be able to work effectively and meet the needs of their patients and those throughout the hospital. Each year the critical care nurse is required to attend over 40 hours of education. Our team uses this knowledge to adapt to whatever is thrown at them.
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