What is a CDU in the ER?
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Emergency department units are called “Clinical Decision Units” (CDU) and are staffed by emergency providers. Why : There is a growing body of evidence which finds that care of observation patients in a protocol driven observation unit is associated with improved outcomes relative to traditional care.
Who assesses patients in the CDU?
While in the CDU, patients will be regularly assessed by a multidisciplinary care team of physicians, nurse practitioners, and other clinical professionals.
What is an 8 bed CDU in a hospital?
Principle: The 8 bed CDU provides service to selected emergency department patients needing observation services. The CDU always has an 8 bed capacity. The unit is generally staffed with two RNs for eight beds. With variations in CDU nurses or CDU patients, some flexibility is required to maximize resource utilization:
What is the role of nuclear medicine in the CDU?
Cardiology / nuclear medicine performs and supervises vasodilator stress and Tc injections when they have open slots. Otherwise vasodilator stress and Tc injections are done and supervised in the CDU, then the patient is sent to nuclear medicine for imaging. All SPECT (Tc) imaging is done and supervised in and by nuclear medicine. 51
How many beds are there in an Ed/CDU?
As a “service”, each ED/CDU always has a capacity according to the local CDU size (i.e. an 8-bed capacity at EUHM) . The unit is generally staffed with two RNs for eight beds. With variations in CDU nurses or CDU patients, some flexibility is required to maximize resource utilization. Using an 8 bed unit as an example:
How will younger patients be managed in the CDU?
Younger patients will be managed in apediatric CHOA hospital based on general pediatric transfer practices. Pediatric CDU patients over the age of 15 should NOT have significant underlying illness or co-morbidities (such as underlying heart disease, sickle cell disease, etc. ) requiring skilled pediatric nursing care .
How is a patient billed in a CDU?
Since patients in the CDU receive a rapid workup, they generally: Outpatient observation stay is billed as outpatient services. Insurance copays and deductibles, along with any additional costs, will be determined by the patient’s insurance policy terms.