This presentation will discuss nursing interventions that can be used to allow for an efficient and accurate motility or pH procedure. The use of information obtained from a detailed nursing assessment will provide for the recognition of individual patient needs. Symptom description should help the motility team member identify what areas may be difficult for the patient to tolerate during the procedure. Some patients may have difficulty with initial catheter probe placement via the nares, some may have difficulty with placement through the lower esophageal sphincter, and some may have difficulty with the sips of water given during the procedure. Techniques specific to individual patient concerns may be used to help ease some of these problems. In some cases, a patient, due to hypersensitivity or psycho-social issues, may not even agree to the procedure being started. This is often seen when patients are experiencing control issues and fear and anxiety responses to the procedure itself. At our institution, we have specialty teams for more involved procedures including motility. The team concept allows for members to become proficient in their specialty area. This presentation will highlight our experiences and offer useful tips for handling the special needs patient.

Section Description

We are pleased to present the abstracts from SGNA's 33rd Annual Course, SGNA on a Mission: Exceeding Expectations. The diversity of these topics certainly reflects the richness and breadth of our specialty. In keeping with the tradition of the Annual Course, we hope the following abstracts will encourage discussions for improving nursing practice and patient care outcomes.