Care essential 5
Prevent infection.
Ventilator-associated pneumonia
(VAP) is a major complication of mechanical
ventilation. Much research
has focused on how best to prevent
VAP. The Institute for Healthcare Improvement
includes the following
components in its best-practices VAP
prevention “bundle”:
• Keep the head of the bed elevated
30 to 45 degrees at all times, if
patient condition allows. Healthcare
providers tend to overestimate
bed elevation, so gauge it
by looking at the bed frame
rather than by simply estimating.
• Every day, provide sedation “vacations”
and assess readiness to extubate,
indicated by vital signs and
arterial blood gas values within
normal ranges as well as the patient
taking breaths on her own.
• Provide peptic ulcer disease prophylaxis,
as with a histamine-2
blocker such as famotidine.
• Provide deep vein thrombosis
prophylaxis, as with an intermittent
compression device.
• Perform oral care with chlorhexidine
daily.
Other measures that decrease
VAP risk include extubating the patient
as quickly as possible, performing
range-of-motion exercisesand patient turning and positioning
to prevent the effects of muscle disuse,
having the patient sit up when
possible to improve gas exchange,
and providing appropriate nutrition
to prevent a catabolic state. Assess
the patient’s tolerance when she
performs an activity by checking vital
signs, oxygenation status, and
pain and agitation levels.
Keeping bacteria out of oral secretions
also reduces VAP risk. Use
an endotracheal tube with a suction
lumen above the endotracheal cuff
to allow continuous suctioning of
tracheal secretions that accumulate
in the subglottic area. Don’t routinely
change the ventilator circuit
or tubing. Brush the patient’s teeth
at least twice a day and provide
oral moisturizers every 2 to 4 hours.