This title is appropriate for all baccalaureate-level courses in critical care and advanced adult or medical surgical nursing, as well as for hospital orientation programs for beginning critical care nurses. An introduction to critical care that helps nurses deliver safe, effective care that optimizes patients' outcome Understanding the Essentials of Critical Care Nursing provides novice critical care nurses with a firm foundation so that they are able to understand the complexities of care, deliver safe, effective care, and begin their transition to expert nurses. It identifies concepts and techniques that are unique to critical care nursing and focuses on the essentials of providing care to patients with disorders that are commonly seen in critical care settings. Evidence-based practices, safety initiatives, commonly used medications, and leading technologies for providing better care are highlighted throughout the book. The Third Edition includes current recommendations for practice as well as new NCLEX (R)-style questions and analytical Why/Why Not features that spark critical thinking and test readers' understanding. By concentrating on the problems that the new critical care nurse is most likely to encounter, the text establishes the groundwork readers need to become increasingly effective nurses capable of offering advanced care.