Week Four, Module 3, and Assignment 1

Well it’s hard to keep up a serious interest in blogging when so few of the class are reading this stuff but I hope to reward those of you reading it now!

I would like to give you few who do check this out a little heads up about next week.  The next chapters on Ventilator Classification are a real slog for students.  I’ve got some worksheets and a few things to try and keep us on track but it really pays to read ahead.  What seems to be the biggest obstacle is the new vocabulary we need to develop so that we can start to understand the performance aspects of mechanical ventilators.  Once this is established we can start our discussions about the modes of ventilation and some of the nuances of ventilating specific patients and adjusting the ventilator to meet their needs.

The essence of this next module is so that we can understand table 42-2, Specifications for some of the modes.  In this table we need to understand all the headings such as; Breathing Pattern, Control Type, Trigger, Limit, and Cycle.  Once these terms are understood we can begin to define the characteristics and unique aspects of each mode of ventilation.

The assignment for this course is actually a virtual laboratory experiment where you will derive the relationship of all ventilator controls for three common modes of ventilation.  For the assignment you will use the virtual ventilator models that I have derived for you.  These are useful because they allow you to control the ventilator and patient parameters, see the resulting outputs without being tangled up in alarms, and ventilator specific controls.  The input and outputs are clearly established in this assignment.  I test regularly and deeply on this subject matter.  It is an expectation that you understand the controls and the interactions. 

An example question would be; In the mode of VC-CMV if the patient’s compliance decreased what would happen to the Ti (inspiratory time) would it, go up, go down, or stay the same?  After completing the assignment you will be able to answer this question.  I hope you find the assignment challenging, fun, and worthwhile.


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Thank you

First Week of Classes

Wow our first week of classes is already over and I’m a little concerned because I had to start off with the dreaded “Blood Gas Introduction”.  Please be assured that this is an introduction to orient us to basic ABG values and the classification terminology.  You will notice there is no Power Point and few official notes except for the worksheets.  This is because ABG’s are part of mechanical ventilation in that we use the ABG’s as a guide to manage the patient.

That said; this next section on indications for mechanical ventilation is important and interesting.  Egans chapter 41 is some good reading and all the critical elements of the course are captured there.  Sometimes students comment that they are uncomfortable when Instructors mention different pathologies that cause respiratory failure.  I can totally empathize with you as pathology is a huge area of study and not yet something you have studied in detail.  The course survival mechanism for this is to look at the table 41-2 page 956 and maybe write out a very brief description for some of the basic pathologies.  I know this is work but a quick “Google” search or a “Wikipedia” search can give you all the basic info you need.  Some of the first pathologies you may be interested in and I tend to use in class are; adult respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS), chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), asthma, and pulmonary infections / pneumonia.  Remember you can always ask in class for me to describe the pathology but it’s hard to grasp my one sentence descriptions delivered off the cuff and on the fly.

My method of using worksheets and in-class exercises I hope works for you.  Notice that I will really emphasize key elements when making presentations and you may wish to focus on this when it comes time for review.

I really enjoy the sidebar discussions and questions in class so please speak up!

Al