EP Lab Digest - February 2008 - (Page 34)

34 EMAIL DISCUSSION GROUP FEBRUARY 2008 exam do you feel is perceived as the more state of the art and Our staff currently consists of 2 RTs (one respected more by peers and is the coordinator) and 1 RN. The coordinator employers? works regularly in the EP lab. None of the EP — Dana St. John, RN labs I have worked in require call time for the (To reply to this question, please type “EP EP staff. In one EP lab I worked in, we evenExams” in your subject line.) tually worked out an alternation of days that three of us would stay to complete proceThe best way to answer your question is dures. The lab I'm in now is very new and to refer you to EP Lab Digest’s October 2007 we're still working out certain logistics, so no issue (http://www.eplabdigest.com/artiregular schedule is needed for staying late. cle/7870), where Christopher M. Nelson, RN, We work out amongst ourselves if someone RCIS, FSICP, representing Cardiovascular Credentialing International (CCI), was interneeds to be off or if someone is sick. viewed about CCI's new RCES exam. In — anonymous short, when asked to compare the RCES exam and the IBHRE EP exam, Mr. Nelson EP Lab Work Schedule Our EP lab will be going to 8- responded "In working with IBHRE, what we hour shifts, 5 days a week in a have proposed and what they have supportcouple of months.This is a deci- ed is that the RCES will be seen as an entry sion that is widely unpopular level credential, so this exam would be taken with our nurses and techs. I am first, and then later one would take the wondering if any other EP labs IBHRE’s advanced practice examination once work 8-hour shifts (all 7–3:30) 5 they’ve gained experience in the field". The days a week, and if so, what has RCES exam establishes minimum competenbeen your experience with this cy for allied professionals working in the scheduling format? Any pros, specialized field of Electrophysiology. — Doug Passey, RCIS, RCES, RCES Exam cons, suggestions? Chair, Cardiovascular Credentialing — Lee Henry, RN International (To reply to this question, please type “Work Schedule” in your subject line.) Is your EP in its first 12-18 months of operation? The last EP lab I worked in went through several different work schedules before we got settled into consistent procedure volume. We started with 2 RTs, 2 RNs working 8-hour shifts starting at 7:00 am, then varying from there as the EP physician was building business, working out clinic days (2-1/2 days, 1 entire day). Eventually, we ended up with enough staff and consistent volume to support working four 10-hour days. The day off was automatically rotated (Monday this week, Tuesday the next), so that each staff person got a four-day weekend every so many weeks. Currently, I am in a new program in another area. The program is very new and we are working five 8-hour shifts at this time. Hope this helps! — anonymous EP Exams Has anyone used the online tutorial from HRS and taken the Cardiac Pacing and Defibrillation Exam in the same year? What are your thoughts about the tutorial with regard to passing the exam? How do you feel about the new RCES certification from SICP that was unveiled this year? Has anyone taken this exam? Did the SICP exam appear more difficult than the HRS’ EP exam, and which “Roles in EP Lab” in your subject line.) Other Questions for Discussion: DFT Testing in Patients with Low Ejection Fractions (EF) Less than 10-15% Shaking the bushes to see if anyone has any anecdotal data regarding defibrillation threshold testing during implant in patients with a low EF% of 10 or less: initial shock, second shock, third shock, rescue-limiting inductions and testing to one course or multiple courses. Single initial shock with number of joules 10 less than defib max. — Dana St. John, RN (To reply to this question, please type “DFT Testing” in your subject line.) Atrial Fibrillation Ablation We are newly starting to do atrial fibrillation ablations, and I was wondering if anyone could give me examples of their institution’s policy on AF ablations? — anonymous (To reply to this question, please type “AF Ablations” in your subject line.) Loop Implant/Explant I was just wondering what some protocols are for loop procedures, particularly explants. I have recently been told that loop explants should take place in a positive pressure room.Any comments on this matter would be appreciated. — Edward Muxlow (To reply to this question, please type “Loop Implant/Explant” in your subject line.) Wearing Hats and Masks / Bringing Food and Drinks Inside the EP Lab Help! We’ve been having major discussions about allowing food and drinks into the EP lab. Also, what is the protocol for wearing hats and masks during ablations? We would like to know what other facilities’ practices are. What do the policies and procedures read, and what is the actual compliance based on the policies and procedures? — Janice Christian, RN, CCRN (To reply to this question, please type “Inside the EP Lab” in your subject line.) How to join EP Lab Digest’s Email Discussion Group: • In each issue of EP Lab Digest, find a listing of the latest questions and responses from our readers. Then email your EP-related questions and/or responses to “eplabdigest@hotmail.com”. • You can also go to “www.eplabdigest.com” and click on the “Email Discussion” link. Here you can reply with your answers and/or ask new questions. • To find previous discussions on a specific topic, click on the “Archives” link on “www.eplabdigest.com”. Choose any issue from any year, and click on the email discussion section for that month. To search a particular topic, you can also click on the “Article Search” link. • Remember to inform us if you would like your name, location, and email address published, or if you prefer to be listed as “name withheld by request.” Your question or response could appear in an upcoming issue of EP Lab Digest! http://www.eplabdigest.com/article/7870 http://www.eplabdigest.com/article/7870 http://www.eplabdigest.com http://www.eplabdigest.com

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of EP Lab Digest - February 2008

EP Lab Digest - February 2008 Creating the U-M Center for Arrhythmia Research: Interview with José Jalife, MD Texas Cardiac Arrhythmia Institute and St. David’s Medical Center Launch State-of-the-Art Training Center Contents Letter from the Editor Spotlight Interview: Caritas St. Elizabeth’s Medical Center 10-Minute Interview: Sue Deck, BS, RN, RCES Keeping Pace With a Blog Roundtable Discussion on Cryoablation Procedures Email Discussion Group: February 2008 Events Calendar Industry News and Products Classifieds Advertisers Index

EP Lab Digest - February 2008

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