Evaluation of care
Duke ' s case was well managed during his period of hospitalisation, and the outcome of the case was successful. Duke was managed by a skilled multidisciplinary team who worked collaboratively to plan and provide effective care during his hospitalisation. The nursing care provided was thorough and holistic, and supported Duke on his journey through recovery.
An area noted for improvement was the use of the continuous thoracic drainage system. The system was not commonly used within the referral hospital and, when it was used, it was often by the dedicated ICU team. The author noted this as a potential knowledge gap and proceeded to collect feedback from the wider team on their understanding of and confidence in using continuous thoracic drainage systems.
Use of these systems was identified as an area of weakness across the wider team, due to low frequency of usage and lack of training opportunities. It was decided to implement internal training within the referral practice to ensure all clinical staff had the opportunity to increase their knowledge of and familiarity with these systems.
Conclusions
Pneumothorax is a serious condition that can be life-threatening. Prompt identification and intervention are required to prevent decompensation. Preparation, planning and efficiency are key when dealing with unstable respiratory patients as they can decompensate rapidly. When planning interventions, it is important to be logical and consider the risk: benefit ratio to ensure that necessary, life-saving interventions are prioritised.
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