The Importance Of Nutrition In The Critically Ill

Critically ill patients require nutritional supplementation and it is vitally important that healthcare workers have a plan of care for such nutritional support. Patients who are critically ill stand a higher chance of malnourishments, decreased quality of life, prolonged hospital stay, and even higher morbidity and mortality rate. Dieticians, Nurses, and Respiratory Practitioners work together as a team to ensure assessment, treatments, and evaluations are put forth as therapeutic standards for these critically ill patients. 

When a patient becomes critically ill the body breaks down muscle protein, fat and other molecules at a faster rate.

This fast breakdown causes energy loss, and illnesses seem to be prolonged especially in a mechanically ventilated patient. Malnutrition adds to the physical stress on top of whatever underlying cause the patient already suffers. This increases the risk of developing infections and impairs the healing process. For this reason, the healthcare team revises a plan to give enough calorie intake for enough energy and proteins to reduce such incidence.

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Patients who suffer from malnutrition often show signs of a poor body build. For instance, they may be under weight or overweight. Their hair may be dull or thin. Skin tones are pale with rashes and the lips may be cracked, swollen and purple in color. Their teeth may be painful or missing with bleeding or receding gum lines. Patients will also inhibit signs of diminished strength and endurance. Physical findings such as this require immediate attention from knowledgeable healthcare workers and intervention must be implemented. 

When beginning a plan of action, a general assessment is first done.

A Dietician gathers facts from numerous sources for the beginning of the assessment. Factors such as past diets, the pattern of food intake, resting energy expenditure via indirect calorimetry are all taken into consideration. This assessment plays a key role in evaluating and classifying patients who may be at risk for malnutrition. Classification is measured on a scale from 1-4. Patients who fall between a three to four are at high risk for death. For this reason, a national support standard has been developed as a guide for the nutritional support process.  

Once the assessment is in place and patient is classified as a candidate for nutritional support it is warranted that support should be started within twenty-four hours after admission. Once the intervention of nutrition is in effect it is provided either by enteral feedings (oral or tube feedings) or parenteral feeding (peripheral or central venous alimentation). When this action is set forth positive effects start to appear. Examples are A patient’s tolerance progress in areas such as improvement in treatment regimens that allows shorter recovery times. Less medications are needed as well as less hospital frequencies. And morbidity and mortality are reduced significantly.  

 “An apple a day keeps the Dr. away” It is no secret, even as small children our parents may have drilled saying such as this into our heads to emphasize the importance of proper nutrition and the importance to being a healthy individual. Proper nutrition for patients with compromised immune systems can mean life or death and although a person’s health relies on a combination of factors our nutrition intake is a major role. Nutritional support insures the bodies whole life outcome. Once nutrition is healthy the body id healthy. In conclusion I leave you with a statement put out by the world Health Organization that said, “Better health is central to human happiness and well-being”. 

Work Cited  

 Siobal, mark, & Baltz, jami. (2013). A Guide To The Nutritional Assessment And Treatment Of The Critically Ill.  
Kacmarek, R. M., Stoller, J. K., & Heuer, A. J. (2017). Egan’s fundamentals of respiratory care. St. Louis (Mo.) Elsevier, Cop.  
Choose MyPlate. (2015). Retrieved March 24, 2019, from Choose MyPlate website httpwww.choosemyplate.gov