Pediatric Crash Cart Medications
Pediatric crash cart is a crash cart or a “code cart” that is used for the emergent needs of young patients, six years and younger. Just like the adult code cart, the pediatric emergency code cart is placed in the hospital areas where it is expected that it could urgently be needed, in places where kids “crash”, or where the chances are that the kids may lose consciousness and need be resuscitated. Places such as in and near emergency rooms, intensive care rooms, delivery rooms, recovery rooms. We will explore the main differences between the pediatric, or child crash cart, and the adult trash cart here.
If you are in a position where you must decide on the type of the emergency carts that you are looking to acquire for your medical center or hospital, then this information will be valuable to you. You will be better able to see exactly whether you need a pediatric crash cart and why.
The main differences between the pediatric code cart and the adult medical code cart are: The type of the AED device used for reviving the child’s heart, the types of medicines, and the types and sizes of incision equipment, tubing, and other life-saving supplies.
AED devices for pediatric crash cart
Automatic Electronic Defibrillators, AEDs, or AED machines, are designed in two sizes, adult, and pediatric. Children’s hearts are smaller and beat faster. Their bodies are smaller and they require smaller electrode pads for defibrillation. Therefore, a pediatric code cart needs to be equipped with a pediatric AED machine, and with the appropriate sized electrodes. In an emergency, there is no time to switch over the machines and the electrode pads, so it is best to keep a pediatric AED machine ready on a pediatric code cart.
The pediatric crash cart medications
Not all medicines that are suitable for adults will be suitable for the children also. Some narcotics, for instance, may simply be too strong for the child’s body to sustain without the adverse reaction.
The medications you will find in regular emergency cart contents but you will not find on the pediatric crash cart medications list include the following drugs:
- Amiodarone
- Magnesium Sulfate
- Procainamide
- Vasopressin
- Verapamil
- Etomidate
Different sizes of incision equipment and tubing
All types of scalpels, tubes, syringes will be of smaller size, suitable for the size of a toddler or a small child. They include endotracheal tubes to access the inside of child’s windpipe, tracheotomy tubes to construct artificial opening into the windpipe due to difficulty breathing, nose tubes or nasal cannula, air flow meters, laryngoscope supplies, exam gloves, and suction devices such as suction catheters. Many of these come in child sizes to better fit the small bodies, be it for diagnostic or for resuscitation purposes.
