AACN Procedure Manual for High Acuity, Progressive, and Critical Care, Seventh Edition

Abstract

The long-awaited 7th edition of the AACN Procedure Manual for High Acuity, Progressive, and Critical Care has just been published by Elsevier. The title itself has been updated to acknowledge that use of the procedures has expanded beyond the traditional critical care environment into a diversity of settings, reflecting that patient needs are not determined by a physical place.During the development of an update it is determined which procedures should be eliminated and which should be added. Not all procedures can be included in one manual, so the goal is to include those procedures related to new and emerging trends in patient care. For example, added procedures include extracorporeal life support, extracorporeal membrane oxygenation, and noninvasive cardiac output monitoring. Procedures that remain from the previous edition have been updated to reflect current practice and available evidence. In some cases, procedures have been combined to be inclusive of activities that are routinely performed together, such as endotracheal tube care and oral care for patients receiving or not receiving mechanical ventilation.Long-time users of the manual will recognize similarities to past editions, including the division of the content into 9 units, which are subdivided into 22 sections with a total of 141 procedures. Four section editors have worked to achieve a cohesive format. The goal is to provide readily accessed information that is easy to follow.Each procedure starts with the purpose of the procedure, prerequisite nursing knowledge, an equipment list, patient and family education, and patient assessment and preparation. Then the step-by-step procedure, including the rationale and any special considerations, associated research, figures and tables, the expected and unexpected outcomes as well as potential complications, follows. The section on patient monitoring includes assessments and interventions such as conditions that require reporting to the advanced practice nurse, physician, or other health care professional. Finally, the documentation section describes what should be documented after the procedure is performed.Procedures that should be performed by advanced practice nurses, physicians, and other health care professionals, including critical care nurses with the additional knowledge, skills, and demonstrated competence, are designated with a specific icon (AP). Additional icons are included to remind the clinician of hand hygiene (HH) and the use of personal protective equipment (PE).AACN is committed to the support of evidence-based practice. Where research exists to support interventions, the current AACN Levels of Evidence are indicated to help the user understand the strength of evidence available.A change in this edition of the Procedure Manual is the availability of the references and additional readings for each procedure as an online resource via a QR code at the end of each procedure. The URLs for all references are listed for alternative access.The Procedure Manual is essential to support the practice of nurses caring for patients in a diversity of settings. The book defines all the components of a given procedure, including the knowledge and skills needed to perform the activity. It also delineates the level of practitioner based on education and licensure that should be performing the procedure.The audience for the Procedure Manual is the department director or manager who has oversight for unit function and staff development; the educator, who needs both the process and the supporting evidence to orient new staff, update the knowledge of existing staff, and assess ongoing competency; and the clinical nurse tasked with the safe care of patients.Information about the table of contents, including the 17 new procedures, can be found online: https://www.aacn.org/store/books/128150aacn-procedure-manual-for-high-acuity-progressive-and-critical-care-7th-ed.