Nurses • Clinical Resources

NCH shared nursing guidelines

At NCH, we are committed to improving patient care. As part of our ongoing improvement efforts, we've created critical guidelines for all nurses in communicating a critical situation or reporting a change in a patient’s condition.

In this way, we can be sure that all healthcare professionals caring for the same patient have the most current information.

These guidelines include:

• Assessing the patient
• Reviewing the chart for the appropriate physician to call
• Reading the most recent progress notes and assessment from prior shift
• Making sure that before you talk to the physician you have the patient’s chart, allergies, medications, IV fluids and lab results

Examples of the NCH Shared Tool Communications Forms include:

PDF format (Requires Adobe Acrobat Reader):

• Communicating a critical situation or change in patient condition
• Home Healthcare
• Obstetrics
• Oncology
• Pediatrics

For more information regarding these or other guidelines, you may email or call Janis Ingebrigtsen, Northwest Community Hospital Director of Patient Satisfaction and Patient Safety at 847.618.7950.