References
Nursing a diabetic patient with hypoglycaemia — a nursing care report
Abstract
Hypoglycaemia presents a genuine life-threatening emergency in the intensive care unit. Veterinary nurses play a vital role in the emergency and critical care of hypoglycaemic patients. This patient care report will discuss and evaluate the nursing care involved with maintenance of intravenous catheter, monitoring of blood glucose and dietary management.
A 15-year-old domestic short-haired cat was presented with a sudden onset of vomiting and disorientation. Initial contact from the owner was made over the telephone; this telephone conversation allowed the veterinary nurse (VN) to triage the patient, arrange an immediate appointment for veterinary examination and inform the veterinary team, ensuring the necessary equipment was prepared prior to the patient's arrival. The VN obtained a brief history, details of current patient condition and an estimated time of arrival. The VN provided the owner with advice on first aid treatment that could be administered prior to arrival at the practice. This patient was a known, unstable diabetic and therefore it was suspected that this patient was suffering from hypoglycaemia; it was advised that the owner administer a dextrose gel solution (GlucoGel, BBI Healthcare) or honey by rubbing it directly onto the cat's mucous membranes (MM) as recommended by Sparkes et al (2015).
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