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Essays about moral dilemma in blood transfusions
Importance of blood transfusion
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Types of Blood Transfusions
Tami Sellers
Delaware Technical and Community College
Types of Blood Transfusions
Introduction
Blood transfusions serve a key function in saving lives within hospitals. Health professionals use them to substitute blood loss during a surgery or following a serious injury to a patient. Blood transfusions also contribute to boosting the body’s health and preventing further bleeding by giving patients blood rich in nutrients and coagulation factors. A small needle inserted into the intravenous system of patients helps deliver healthy blood to them, and the process may take one to four hours depending on the amount of blood a patient needs. Three types of blood transfusions are common: red blood cell, platelets and
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Such transfusions are common among patients who have acute liver diseases, bad burns, or severe infections. Due to the nature of the problems that this type of transfusion addresses, its benefits include saving the lives of critically ill patients and giving their bodies the nutrients they need to survive. Another major benefit of this type of transfusion is the low risk of infection connected to it due to the availability of pathogen-reduced plasma, which is approved by the Food and Drug …show more content…
Nonetheless, they bring some negative consequences to patients’ health. Understanding the risks can enhance the potential of nurses to prevent and address problems when they occur. The strengths and weaknesses of blood transfusions identified in this paper provide a basis for such comprehension. Most of them are ranked according to the nature of the blood transfusion where they occur, but nurses should remember that they can happen within any type of blood transfusion, particularly the infections. Thus, nurses should strive to understand the effective application of blood transfusions and measures that they can take to eliminate their
An exchange transfusion is a procedure that removes your baby 's blood in small amounts and replaces it with donor blood or the yellow-colored liquid part of blood (plasma).
It was during this time that doctors and nurses, through experience also demonstrated that blood could be stored and then safely transferred from patient to patient saving countless soldiers’ lives.
Central lines (CL) are used frequently in hospitals throughout the world. They are placed by trained health care providers, many times nurses, using sterile technique but nosocomial central line catheter associated blood stream infections (CLABSI) have been a dangerous issue. This is a problem that nurses need to pay particular attention to, and is a quality assurance issue, because CLABSI’s “are associated with increased morbidity, mortality, and health care costs” (The Joint Commission, 2012). There have been numerous studies conducted, with the objective to determine steps to take to decrease CLABSI infection rate, and research continues to be ongoing today. The problem is prevalent on many nursing units, with some patients at great risk than others, but some studies have shown if health care providers follow the current literature, or evidence based guidelines, CLABSIs can be prevented (The Joint Commission, 2012). The purpose of this paper is to summarize current findings related to this topic, and establish a quality assurance (QA) change plan nurses can implement for CL placement and maintenance, leading to decreased risk of nosocomial CLABSIs.
Harmening, D. M. (2005). Modern Blood Banking & Transfusion Practices. Philidelphia, PA: F.A. Davis Company.
Blood doping could have opposite effect of those intended. A large infusion of red blood cells could increase blood thickness and cause a decrease in cardiac output and a reduction in oxygen content. Both would reduce aerobic capacity. The human heart was not designed to pump thickened blood throughout the body and, therefore, it could lead to a multitude of problems. The diseases that can be contracted from autologous blood transfusion are severe. Even more frightening is the list of diseases that can be contracted through homologous blood transfusion. It includes hepatitis, AIDS, malaria, and CMV. In addition, shock is a factor to be aware of.
Donating blood can be a quite rewarding experience and I encourage everyone to take part in this unique opportunity to save 3 lives with each donation.
The nurse to patient ratio is unrealistic in many hospitals. In most cases it is almost impossible to give each patient the true amount of detailed care they really need. This is seen in most cases where there is one nurse assigned to 16 patients and each patient requires a different level of attention. Nurses are pressed for time, forcing them to cut corners, resulting in an increase in nosocomial infections and patient deaths. “The past decade has been a unsettled time for many US hospitals and practicing nu...
Although blood transfusions had been used before the First World War, many were not successful due to lack of knowledge in this type of treatments. World War I pushed the development of blood transfusions, allowing them to be safer. Before the war in the 17th century, blood transfusions often occurred with the use of animal blood, a practice that did not achieve desired results. These transfusions often times came from sheep, and although they were sometimes successful, it was discovered that any large amounts of transfusions would cause death. Coming to the conclusion that animal blood transfusions did not save lives, scientists looked to humans for human to human transfusions. Many of these attempted transfusions were met with failure but in 1818, Dr. James Blundell accomplished the first successful human blood transfusion; four ounces of blood were transferred to the patient from her husband. From that moment on, doctors began to learn even more about blood transfusions and how to do them properly. By 1901, the four human blood groups were discovered by Karl Landsteiner; with less differences in the bloods transfused together, coagulation and clumping amounts decreased. This benefited many lives in that toxic reactions to the wrong types of blood did not occu...
Sepsis is a life threating health condition and if not treated early can lead to shock, multiple organ failure and death (Ho, 2012). The main study of which practice has been based world-wide is the Surviving Sepsis Campaign. The Surviving Sepsis Campaign was developed to create evidence-based management guidelines. The Surviving Sepsis Campaign completed this by using an educational program to implement the guidelines by integrating their recommendations into resuscitation and management bundles (Marik, 2011). The first Surviving Sepsis Campaign Guidelines were published in Critical Care Medicine in 2004 with an updated version published in 2008 with the core of the recommendation's remained largely unchanged (Ahrens, 2011).
The Mayo Clinic defines a blood transfusion as “a routine medical procedure in which donated blood is provided to you through a narrow tube placed within a vein in your arm”. The first human blood transfusion on record was conducted by Dr. Jean-Baptiste Denys, a French physician during the late 1600’s. Although Denys’ transfusions weren’t sound proof and often written off as unorthodox, he unknowingly ushered in a new era of medicine and laid the foundation for modern advances in Hematology. I choose this topic because I volunteer to donate blood four times a year alongside thousands of other people. On average these donations help save 4.5 million Americans that would die in a years’ time without a blood transfusion. These generous people
VI. Some individuals requiring blood are surgical patients; burn victims; accident victims; anemics'; hemophiliacs; seriously ill babies; and persons suffering from leukemia, cancer, kidney disease and liver disease.
Thirdly, the science of nursing is exemplified in the fact that nurses are partakers in the lot of people who are lifelong learners. With the presentation of new and diverse challenges by the day, new skills are gained. The medical profession being as dynamic as it is, requires efforts commensurate to the fast changing picture of the medical arena. New outbreaks emerge which prompts the development of new procedures and interventions.
Complete Blood Count with Differential is one of the most commonly ordered tests for routine check-ups and/or physicals. A complete blood count with differential measures the levels of red blood cells, white blood cells, platelet levels, hemoglobin and hematocrit. Most of the time it is ordered as a screening test to check for anemia or infection. The Complete Blood Count with Differential is used to aid in diagnosing and treating a large number of conditions (Lockwood, 2013).
I will be investigating Human Blood as my specific tissue and giving an overview on the location, characteristics, and the benefits it has to the human body. Blood is extracellular matrix that is consists of plasma, red blood cells, platelets, and white blood cells. Blood is located within the capillaries/veins/arteries of the human body, which are blood vessels that run through the entire body. These blood vessels allow the blood to flow smoothly and quickly from the heart to distinct parts of the human body. The unique parts of human blood all work together for a purpose: the Red Blood Cells(erythrocytes) transports oxygen throughout the body, White Blood Cells(leukocytes) play a part in the bodies immune system, Platelets(thrombocytes) assist in creating scabs,
First Aid is the initial care for an illness or injury. First Aid is usually performed in emergency situations by a non-professional person. First Aid can be performed on animals although it is generally meant for the care of humans. Going back to the beginning of the practice of First Aid, it was first practiced by the religious knights in the Eleventh Century. Care was provided to the Pilgrims and Knights as well as training on how to care for common battle wounds. Aid came to a halt during the High Middle Ages and organizations were not seen again until 1859. A few years later, a few nations met in Geneva and formed what we know to be the Red Cross. The main purpose of the Red Cross was to give Aid to the sick and wounded soldiers during battle. In 1878, the formation of St. John Ambulance was put into effect. The ambulance was generally for aid to people in emergencies. Large railway centers, mining districts and police forces were the first to pair with ambulances. Also in 1878 the concept of teaching First Aid to civilians was announced. Surgeon-Major Peter Shepherd and Dr. Coleman performed the first First Aid class with a curriculum that they had formed. First Aid training began to grow in the UK with high risk activities.