Respiratory Care Unit (RCU)
Respiratory Care Unit (RCU)
Leadership
Patti Pampinto, RN
Nursing Director
Kathy Sackett
Nursing Educator
About the Unit
RCU is a 17-bed unit. RCU is located in the Core Pavilion on the ground floor. It is open 24-hours- a-day, 7-days-a-week.
Staff
Head Nurse: Marie Marzan, RN
Head Nurse: Lauren Duh, RN
Head Nurse: Jennifer Wentzel, RN
Case Manager: Robin McManus, RN
Social Worker: Aleya Farrell
There are clinical care technicians each shift who assist with basic patient care. There is a unit secretary on each shift to perform data entry and secretarial duties.
Patient population
The RCU nursing staff cares for acutely ill patients ages 21 years through the lifespan who have a variety of pulmonary diseases. These patients include those with respiratory failure, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, asthma, and those requiring weaning from mechanical ventilation.
Patient Care Needs
Patients on RCU receive 1:3 to 1:5 nursing care. Patients may require continuous cardiac monitoring and interpretation, intermittent 12-lead EKG performance, non-invasive monitoring of blood pressure and continuous pulse oximetry, ventilator management, transfusion of blood products, laboratory analysis, and pharmacological management including intravenous pharmacological agents such as low dose dobutamine, dopamine, heparin, lidocaine, milrinone, nitroglycerin, pronestyl, cardizem, amiodarone,and lasix.
About Our Nurses
Nursing care is provided by professional registered nurses competent in the care of critically ill patients. Competencies include, but are not limited to:
- EKG certification
- Continuous pulse oximetry monitoring
- Managing mechanical ventilators
- Cardioversion and defibrillation
- Management of vasoactive, anti-arrhythmic and anticoagulation drug therapies
- Temporary transcutaneous external pacemaker application
