Routine Neurological Assessments by Nurses in the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit

Activity Summary

Required reading for all learners: Implicit Bias impacts patient outcomes

This article describes one unit’s aims, which were to standardize the policies and procedures for bedside neurological assessment by nurses, develop and implement a system for physicians and nurse practitioners to order neurological assessments by nurses at a frequency based on risk stratification for brain injury, and develop and implement a system to compare patients’ current neurological status with their pre-illness neurological status determined by a physician or nurse practitioner and previous neurological assessments by nursing.

Objectives

Describe the essential components of a bedside nursing neurological assessment for a critically ill patient.
Recognize the challenges in performing and interpreting neurological assessment in critically ill children with developmental disabilities.
Describe the importance of standardized bedside neurological assessments and systems for determination and documentation of pre-illness neurological status.

Continuing Education Disclosure Statement

Successful Completion

Learners must attend/view/read the entire activity and complete the associated evaluation to be awarded the contact hours or CERP. No partial credit will be awarded.

Disclosure

This activity has been reviewed by the Nurse Planner. It has been determined that the material presented here shows no bias. No conflicts of interest have been identified for any individual with the ability to influence the content of this activity. Accreditation refers to recognition of continuing education only and does not imply AACN or ANCC approval or endorsement of any commercial products discussed or displayed in conjunction with this educational activity.

Accreditation

The American Association of Critical-Care Nurses (AACN) is accredited as a provider of nursing continuing professional development by the American Nurses Credentialing Center's (ANCC's) Commission on Accreditation, ANCC Provider Number 0012. AACN has been approved as a provider of continuing education in nursing by the California State Board of Nursing (CBRN), California Provider number CEP 1036. This activity is approved for 1.00 contact hours.

AACN programming meets the standards for most states that require mandatory continuing education contact hours for license and/or certification renewal. AACN recommends consulting with your state board of nursing or credentialing organization before submitting CE to fulfill continuing education requirements.

Refund Policy

Continuing Education Activities are nonrefundable.