Pneumonia

The purpose of this course is to provide physicians, nurses, and other healthcare professionals who manage the care of patients with pneumonia a foundation for effective management strategies in order to improve outcomes and foster an interprofessional collaborative practice consistent with published guidelines. In addition, members of the public may use this course to enhance their personal knowledge of the subject matter presented.


Upon completion of this course, you should be able to:


1. Discuss the epidemiology, scope, and classification of pneumonias.

2. Predict the likely etiology (pathogens) in a given case of pneumonia, based on epidemiologic features, clinical setting, and risk factor assessment.

3. Assess the diagnostic probability of pneumonia in a given patient, using careful history and clinical examination findings.

4. Determine, by clinical criteria and severity of illness score, which patients with pneumonia require hospitalization or admission to an intensive care unit.

5. Develop a management plan for community-acquired pneumonia, including selection of initial antibiotic therapy appropriate to clinical context and site of care, in accordance with established guidelines.

6. Outline the diagnosis and management of community-acquired pneumonia in pediatric patients.

7. Devise a strategy for prevention of community-acquired pneumonia, including risk factor reduction and recommended immunization protocols.

8. Identify the epidemiology and risk factors of hospital-acquired, ventilator-associated, and nursing home-acquired pneumonia.

9. Anticipate the likely pathogens and antibiotic- sensitivity patterns associated with pneumonia that arises in healthcare facilities.

10. Initiate the management of patients with hospital-acquired or ventilator-associated pneumonia, including guideline-adherent selection of empiric antibiotic therapy.

11. Develop a strategy to reduce the risk of pneumonia for patients in healthcare facilities.


This 10-hour continuing education course is available for download for professional development; if continuing education credit is desired, please see instructions included in eBook.