Details for 2nd placement

Well i have just found out where i will be going on my 2nd placement at the beginning of February


Here is the details:

Planned Investigation and Treatment Unit (PITU)
PITU is a 20 bedded medical ward with 5 infusion chairs. Development of this facility supported by the dedicated staff that run it, represents a major achievement in delivering high quality care for scleroderma cases at the Royal Free. This unit supports a large number of medical specialities such as Rheumatology, Cardiology and others. All our patient bookings are managed by 2 ward administrators who are responsible for all our bed bookings. Patients are able to contact them Monday-Friday 0900- 1700hrs with regard to their booking and treatments and are able to speak to nursing staff and the Rheumatology team if required. The ward is open Monday- Thursday 24hrs and then closed on a Friday at 2000hrs. Patients come in from home and the majority are independent and self caring. Length of stay will vary according to why they are admitted and it can be from a few hours to 5 continuous.

We arrange investigations, infusions or procedures of which will all be assessed by our Rheumatology team. We are closely connected to the Clinical Nurses Specialists in order to maintain a high level of knowledge and education through their teaching and training on the ward.

Approximately 8-10 scleroderma patients a week come to us for routine iloprost infusions and whilst an inpatient we routinely have cardiac echos, lung function, bloods and renal function assessed. Some patients can go home after a 6 hour infusion; some stay in hospital for the whole duration. All nursing staff on the ward are experienced nurses in Rheumatology specialist diseases and are competent in giving and managing iloprost infusions.