Saint Francis University

About: Saint Francis University is a education organization based out in Loretto, Pennsylvania, United States. It is known for research contribution in the topics: Population & Osteoblast. The organization has 1694 authors who have published 2038 publications receiving 87149 citations.

Image based background magnetic field correction for aortic and pulmonary artery flow measurement using phase contrast

Abstract: Methods Twelve volunteers underwent breath-hold through-plane phase contrast (PC) imaging of cross sectional view of the ascending aorta and PA. PC imaging was immediately repeated on a static fluid-filled phantom. Phase images were analyzed using QFlow (Medis, Leiden, Netherlands.). Phase shift was also analyzed in static background and in surrounding tissues including chest wall fat and muscle, lung and vertebral body. For PA flow Images only lung and static background were consistently present. Since background phase shift is linearly decreased from anterior to posterior, we calculated background phase shift at the aortic position using linear regression against distance of the aorta from anterior chest wall. Given the proximity of the aortic and PA in z direction the calculated aortic background phase was applied to the PA as well.

Infection stops here.

Abstract: For questions related to this article, contact Warlita Barcelona Au at lita.au@verizon.net. units within the hospital and directly from other local hospitals. The case mix for the MICU II includes but is not limited to patients who require intra-aortic balloon pump therapy, acute stroke patients who may or may not have received tissue plasminogen activator, and patients who require therapeutic hypothermia after cardiac arrest. The MICU II is the hospital’s designated stroke ICU and therapeutic hypothermia unit. Staff in the MICU II are specially trained to care for patients who require these advanced therapies. One of the MICU II nurses and a critical care midlevel practitioner respond to every code throughout the hospital, and they are also the first-line responders to any neurological rapid response teams that are called. Instituting zero tolerance for CLAB infections was a challenging process for us because many MICU II patients are immunocompromised and require placement of a central venous catheter for administration of various drugs to treat acute and chronic illnesses. The year-to-date mean length of stay for a MICU II patient is 6.42 days. In an effort to optimize a culture of interdisciplinary collaboration for the MICU II patients, over the course of a year, we instituted education for the staff, identified barriers, and applied In 2008, our hospital, Saint Francis Heart Center, instituted a policy of zero tolerance for bloodstream infections associated with central venous catheters (or as we call them, central line–associated bloodstream [CLAB] infections). Our hospital, a Magnetdesignated institution, is a 319-bed facility known on Long Island and in surrounding areas as “The Heart Center.” We treat and manage not only patients with cardiac conditions but also patients who require medical and surgical care. For 4 years in a row, Saint Francis has been voted one of the nation’s best hospitals by US News and World Report. We are also a New York State–designated stroke center. The hospital has 4 intensive care units (ICUs): the medical ICU (MICU), the surgical ICU, the cardiothoracic ICU, and the MICU II, which is where we work. Each unit has 20 beds, including 2 negative-pressure rooms that enable us to care for patients with airborne illnesses. In the MICU II, we care for critically ill patients who sometimes have tested positive for multidrug-resistant organisms such as vancomycinresistant enterococci, methicillinresistant Staphyloccus aureus, multidrug-resistant Klebsiella, and Acinetobacter. We perform a nasal culture on all patients admitted to the ICU and place a contact precautions sign outside of the room of any patient who tests positive for multidrug-resistant organisms, as well as listing those patients on a daily infection control log. During flu season, we care for critically ill patients who have influenza-like illness or test positive for influenza A or influenza B. To assist us in tracking patients who might develop symptoms of influenza-like illness, a fever log is maintained. All patients with a temperature of 100oF (37.8oC) or higher are placed on the log and assessed for cough and sore throat. This information is submitted to Infection Prevention and Control monthly. As a diversified unit, we have a large case mix of patients who require mechanical ventilation, both orally intubated patients and patients with a tracheostomy. Patients are admitted to the MICU II from other Authors