Responsibilities of the anesthetist Flashcards
(9 cards)
What should be the primary task of the anesthetist if working alone?
The primary tasks is careful, constant monitoring of the surgical patient. This means delaying the final surgical scrub (or other less critical tasks) until the patient is stable
What does close, constant monitoring allow the anesthetist to detect?
Allows the anesthetist to detect dangerous trends and to make appropriate adjustments
What can the anesthetist do if the patient is showing signs of waking up?
The anesthetist can increase the concentration of anesthetic
What can the anesthetist do if the patient is showing signs of becoming too deeply anesthetized?
The anesthetist can decrease the concentration of gas delivered
How long and how often should the anesthetist monitor the patient under anesthesia?
Patient should be monitored the entirety of the anesthesia, and should be made every 5 - 10 min
More frequent monitoring may be required if?
- The patient is compromised
- The inhalation agent used has a low solubility/parturition coefficient (allowing for quick changes in anesthetic depth).
What should the anesthetist document while monitoring the patient under anesthesia?
- Volume of fluid administration
- Oxygen flow rate
- Anesthetic gas concentration
- Any other medications administered
What are patient parameters that should be monitored?
- Heart rate and rhythm
- Respiratory rate and rhythm
- Capillary refill time, color of mucous membranes
- Eye position, muscle tone, and reflexes
- The patient’s temperature should be monitored at least every 15 minutes if possible
What are some examples of hands-on, direct monitoring?
- Listen for heart rate and resp rate through the use of a stethoscope
- The pulse can be palpated to obtain a general impression of pulse strength
- The reservoir bag can be observed for frequency and extent of movement
- The color of mm and CRT
- The technician sense of smell can detect possible anesthetic leakage problems
