Fluid resuscitation following multiple trauma

Abstract

The initial minutes and hours of nursing care of the trauma victim make a critical difference in the patient's chance for recovery. The critical care and ED nurse's ability to provide fluid resuscitation rapidly to augment the patient's flagging vascular volume is critical to the maintenance of circulation. By administering the most appropriate solution to meet the trauma patient's physiologic requirements, the nurse ensures that the patient will have an adequate circulating volume to meet the oxygenation and nutritional requirements of body tissues. Early, rapid fluid resuscitation is essential to stave off noncompensatory, irreversible shock. By implementing specific nursing care strategies to increase the flow of IV solutions to the patient, the nurse combats the nursing diagnosis appropriate for almost every multiple trauma victim: Fluid Volume Deficit.