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Medical/Surgical Critical Thinking Paper

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Submitted By alewis
Words 10241
Pages 41
Critical Thinking Paper
Aubrey Lewis
Grand Canyon University
11/11/11

SYSTEMATIC ASSESSMENT
Biographical Data Patient, C.L, is a 52-year-old Caucasian female that was admitted to Banner Thunderbird on 09/29/11 for difficulty breathing and shortness of breath (SOB). The patient has no known drug or food allergies and is registered as a “do not resuscitate” and “do not intubate” (DNR/DNI).
History of Present Illness Patient stated that she had woken up through out the night drenched in sweat and the inability to catch her breath. This is what brought her to the emergency department where she presented with difficulty breathing (dyspnea), and shortness of breath. Based upon how the patient presented and the results of the diagnostic tests that were conducted the patient was admitted to the progressive care unit of Banner Thunderbird. Diagnostic tests that were conducted was a chest X-ray, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), and ultra sound to determine if there is a build up or either fluid and/or air in the pleural spaces of the lungs or a tumor that is causing the patient to have difficulty breathing. Non-imaging tests that are conducted would be a blood studies and arterial blood gas test. The blood studies would be able to dictate if the patient has a bacterial or viral infection, pneumonia, rheumatic fever, a pulmonary embolus, or lupus, and the arterial blood gas test will be able to show how well the lungs are taking in oxygen by measuring oxygen and carbon dioxide within the arterial blood that is drawn (Pagana & Pagana, 2010). After collecting the patients medical history, and the results of all the diagnostic tests that were conducted it was determined that the patient had air and fluid accumulation in the pleural spaces in the lungs and needed to have a ultrasound guided thorocentesis to collect a sample of

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