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An elderly woman named Liza who showed symptoms of near syncope was admitted via ambulance to a small community hospital. She experienced an inability to move on her own and almost lost consciousness while watching her grandson play basketball. Her symptoms occurred during a visit to her daughter’s home, which is approximately 150 miles from Liza’s home. When Liza was admitted to the hospital, her daughter explained the numerous types and dosages of medications her mother was taking. She also mentioned that Liza had not been taking her Coumadin as directed by her physician for the past week or so. Liza was admitted to the intensive care unit for evaluation. Over the course of hospitalization, Liza’s condition worsened. Approximately 18 hours after her admission, the nursing staff began performing nervous system checks on Liza and contacted the physician-on-call to obtain an order for a CT scan. The scan showed evidence of a cerebral infarction. Appropriate treatment for the infarction then was provided.
Evaluate this patient’s care using the four core processes of the Patient Care Process Cycle.
How could these processes be monitored so that the treatments could be related to the outcome?
What worked and what didn’t work in the patient care processes in this case study?
Could standard procedures have improved this patient’s care?
