Foundations of arrhythmia interpretation

Basic arrhythmia monitoring is being used with increasing frequency in both inpatient and outpatient care settings. Nurses are being asked to interpret cardiac rhythms and develop critical thinking skills that assist in evaluating the significance of the rhythms identified for individual patients. The foundations needed for nurses to evaluate cardiac rhythms and assess the significance of the rhythms identified are provided. Cardiac anatomy, physiology, and cardiac properties are used to provide a framework for interpreting and understanding rhythms.