The gastrointestinal system drives nutrition, hydration, and comfort, and its problems range from the common and manageable — opioid-induced constipation — to the immediately dangerous — a rigid abdomen signaling perforation or melena signaling a GI bleed, especially on an anticoagulant. Distinguishing a benign change from an acute abdomen or active bleeding, and managing bowel and ostomy care, require nursing judgment.
The purpose of this module is to give clinicians the skilled framework and chartable language that demonstrate the abdominal examination, bowel management, ostomy care, and acute-event recognition were reasonable and necessary and required the skills of a licensed nurse. It is the primary home for the GI examination and bowel function; intake is cross-linked to Nutrition, fluid balance to Hydration, and GI bleeding on anticoagulation to the Anticoagulation overlay.
