It is important for nurses to have an awareness of fungal pneumonia. Fungal pneumonia is a rare condition, but is quite serious and needs prompt diagnosis and treatment.
Many times the clinical symptoms and presentation are identical to the more common bacterial pneumonia so, the diagnostic efforts must be stepped up to more aggressive methods (i.e. fine needle aspiration, fiberoptic bronchoscopy and at times even thoracoscopic or traditional open lung biopsy).
Through these tests a conclusive diagnosis is made to initiate the appropriate and most effective treatment (Mandanas, 2011). In certain cases there are some clinical symptoms or clues that indicate a fungal cause.
If attention is not paid to the minor difference and indications of this atypical pneumonia, the patient can become very sick, very fast.
What can nurses do when a patient is being treated as a bacterial or viral pneumonia and it is clear the patient is not improving?