Research Paper on:
Mechanical Ventilation: A Case Study

Unformatted Sample Text from the Research Paper:
an 87 year old male, 148 lbs. and 58" tall. John has a long history of pneumonia, chronic cough and has recently been diagnosed with COPD (chronic obstructive pulmonary  disease) (Wolff, 2003). John has a 60 year history of cigarette smoking, smoking over 2 packs a day, and this has resulted in the diagnosis of COPD.  In the week prior to his admission, John noted increasing tightness in his chest and shortness of breath. The visiting nurse at his assisted living facility ruled out a  heart attack and attributed his shortness of breath to a cold that exacerbated his COPD. On the day of admission, nursing care at the facility noted that John was  increasingly lethargic and at times non-responsive. Staff related some of this to his cold and a lack of sleep that he had complained about earlier in the day.  A history of heart conditions, including an aortic valve replacement surgery 6 years before this incident led to the call for EMS response and the transport of John to the  emergency room. At the time of presentation, John was living alone in an assisted living facility. Johns wife had died of complications from pneumonia approximately a decade before,  and John noted a resistance to mechanical ventilation as a part of the treatment plan. John stated in one of his few lucid periods that his wife had died  when they attempted to wean her from mechanical ventilation unsuccessfully. John stated that while at home, he had been utilizing asthma medication prescribed for him some years ago, including  a nebulizer with albuterol, and had self-medicated for 8 days prior to the day of admission. Admissions Data-Day 1 John presented at the ER with shortness of breath, disorientation,