Safety Through Education and Communication

The mission

Sedation Certification's mission is to train sedation RNs, PAs and MDs in safe, effective sedation and to keep them updated on current issues related to the sedation of adult and pediatric patients.

Nursing Service personnel are involved with managing the nursing care of patients receiving sedation or analgesic medications while undergoing invasive diagnostic or therapeutic procedures.  Medication administration, patient monitoring, discharge instructions, family teaching and patient safety concerns are all nursing care critical elements of patients undergoing conscience sedation.

Moderate Sedation Certification training, often referred to as IV sedation, conscious sedation and procedural sedation is designed for non-anesthesia providers and defines minimal sedation, moderate sedation, deep sedation and general anesthesia.

Safe Sedation is the goal of Sedation Certification. Training addresses patient safety and the continuum of care which includes the ability to identify and to rescue patients during adverse events or complications.

Minimal Sedation (Anxiolysis) drug-induced state during which patients respond normally to verbal commands. Although cognitive function and coordination may be impaired, ventilatory and cardiovascular functions are unaffected.

Moderate Sedation / Analgesia (Conscious Sedation) is a drug-induced depression of consciousness during which patients respond purposefully to verbal commands, either alone or accompanied by light tactile stimulation. No interventions are required to maintain a patent airway, and spontaneous ventilation is adequate. Cardiovascular function is usually maintained.

Deep Sedation / Analgesia is a drug-induced depression of consciousness during which patients cannot be easily aroused but respond purposefully following repeated or painful stimulation. The ability to independently maintain ventilatory function may be impaired. Patients may require assistance in maintaining a patent airway, and spontaneous ventilation may be inadequate. Cardiovascular function is usually maintained.

General Anesthesia is a drug-induced loss of consciousness during which patients are not arousable, even by painful stimulation. The ability to independently maintain ventilatory function is often impaired. Patients often require assistance in maintaining a patent airway, and positive pressure ventilation may be required because of depressed spontaneous ventilation or drug-induced depression of neuromuscular function. Cardiovascular function may be impaired. Because sedation is a continuum, it is not always possible to predict how an individual patient will respond. Hence, practitioners intending to produce a given level of sedation should be able to rescue patients whose level of sedation becomes deeper than initially intended. Individuals administering Moderate Sedation/Analgesia ("Conscious Sedation") should be able to rescue patients who enter a state of Deep Sedation/Analgesia, while those administering Deep Sedation/Analgesia should be able to rescue patients who enter a state of general anesthesia.

The Continuum of Care is:

Consciousness … sedation… deep sedation… anesthesia… coma…DEATH

The goal of the nurse and provider managing the conscious sedation on this continuum is "sedation".