Urinary Retention

This assignment will focus on an account of patient care that I have provided to a patient who was unable to excrete urine during a long day shift in a secondary care setting. It will discuss regarding my contribution to a change in care while assessing the patient. The assessment will be evaluated to help analyse and synthesise information, make evidence- based decision and implement these decisions into clinical environment appropriately which is also known as clinical decision making according to Pritchard (2006). I will be using evidence based research and appropriate pathophysiology to understand why the patient had to be catheterized. Consent has been gained and a pseudonym is given to protect the patients’ identity as people have the right to confidentiality according to Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC, 2008a). Therefore she will be addressed as Tania.
Tania was a 68 years old lady who was admitted to Coronary Care Unit (CCU). During her stay a coronary angiography procedure was done on her. Coronary angiography is used to diagnose a number of heart conditions and to help guide treatment according to National Health Service (NHS) (2012). After this procedure, she had tried to pass urine several times using a bed pan. She was unable to do this even with a full bladder sensation.
As her discomfort was rising, I and my mentor concluded that she was experiencing urinary retention. This is one of the most common complication post angiography according to Walters Huang et al. (2008) who did a group research on it. As Pellatt (2007a) describes that urinary retention is the sudden inability to excrete urine, the decision to catheterise her was made.
One aspect of the urinary system is to get rid of waste products as a result of cellular metabolism. Hence it is referred as the excretory system according to Self (2006). The urinary elimination depends on effective functioning of kidneys, ureters, bladder and urethra (Kozier et al. 2008).Urine is produced by