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nursing care for newborn infants, and instruct mothers in
postnatal self-care and newborn care.
For patients in intensive care units, the nurses and patient
attendants provide care of a more sustained and specialized
nature than that provided to the usual medical and surgical
patients. Nurses and attendants also staff the emergency room.
Acute care hospitals generally provide numerous ancillary
services in support of basic hospital and nursing care provided
to patients. Ancillary units include laboratories for performing
diagnostic and routine laboratory tests of all kinds, a blood
bank for procuring, receiving, and storing a supply of blood and
blood derivatives to be used in surgery and patient treatment, an
electrocardiology department for performing a variety of
diagnostic testing of patients with heart disease, a radiology
department for taking radiographs and fluorographs (often
including a separate cardiac catheterization laboratory,
ultrasound laboratory, nuclear medicine facility, angiocardiology
center, and other units performing various radiological
functions), and an anesthesiology department for assisting in
surgery and other in-hospital procedures by administering gases
and other anesthetics. The various ancillary departments employ
many specially trained personnel who perform specific technical
service functions necessary for patient treatment.
As of December 31, 1986, acute care hospitals owned by
petitioners were located in 26 States and four foreign countries.
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