Chagas disease: clinical overview and implications for nursing.

Chagas disease, an infection caused by a protozoan parasite and previously endemic to Mexico and Central and South America, is becoming more prevalent in the United States and Canada. Because nurses and physicians in health care settings may be the first to encounter undiagnosed cases of Chagas disease, it is essential that public health personnel and health care providers in general become more familiar with the disease, including its incidence and prevalence, clinical manifestations, diagnostic criteria, treatment options, and implications for nursing.

Enhancing patient safety through a standardized model of physiologic monitoring.

The use of physiologic monitoring (e.g., cardiac monitoring) as an important component in providing safe patient care has escalated over the past two decades.