Improving situation awareness to reduce unrecognized clinical deterioration and serious safety events

Fostering self-determination of bedside providers to promote active participation in rapid response events

BACKGROUND

Widespread implementation of rapid response (RR) systems positively impacts outcomes of clinically unstable hospitalized patients. Collaboration between bedside providers and specialized responding teams is crucial for effective functioning of RR system. Bedside, providers often harbor negative feelings about having to 'call for help' that could impact their active participation in RR.

OBJECTIVE

The objective of the study is to enhance active participation of bedside providers in RR by fostering self-determination through targeted education.

DESIGN

Needs assessment affirmed that bedside providers in our tertiary academic pediatric hospital felt loss of control over patient care, lack of competence, and disconnect from the RR team. We used the principles of autonomy, competence, and relatedness posited by the self-determination theory to guide the development, implementation, and evaluation of our educational program for bedside providers.

RESULTS

Forty-two bedside providers participated in our program. Participants reported significant improvement in RR-related clinical knowledge. More importantly, there was significant enhancement in individual perceptions of autonomy (pre-mean: 2.12, post-mean: 4.4) competence (pre-mean: 2.15, post-mean: 4.4), and relatedness (pre-mean: 2.65, post-mean: 4.5) with RR (p < 0.01). The evaluation results for overall educational effectiveness showed a mean score of 4.69 ± 0.79. All scores were based on a 5-point Likert scale of 1: poor to 5: excellent. Educators noted good participant engagement. The program's structure, evaluations, and data management were modified based on the feedback.

CONCLUSIONS

We successfully developed and implemented targeted educational program for bedside providers based on self-determination theory. The evaluations showed improvement in bedside providers' clinical RR knowledge and perceptions of autonomy, competence, and relatedness following the training.

Implementation study of a 5-component pediatric early warning system (PEWS) in an emergency department in British Columbia, Canada, to inform provincial scale up

Background

The rapid identification of deterioration in the pediatric population is complex, particularly in the emergency department (ED). A comprehensive multi-faceted Pediatric Early Warning System (PEWS) might maximize early recognition of clinical deterioration and provide a structured process for the reassessment and escalation of care. The objective of the study was to evaluate the implementation fidelity, effectiveness, and utility of a 5-component PEWS implemented in the ED of an urban public general hospital in British Columbia, Canada, and to guide provincial scale up.

Methods

We used a before-and-after design to evaluate the implementation fidelity, effectiveness, and utility of a 5-component PEWS (pediatric assessment flowsheet, PEWS score, situational awareness, escalation aid, and communication framework). Sources of data included patient medical records, surveys of direct care staff, and key-informant interviews. Data were analyzed using mixed-methods approaches.

Results

The majority of medical records had documented PEWS scores at triage (80%) and first bedside assessment (81%), indicating that the intervention was implemented with high fidelity. The intervention was effective in increasing vital signs documentation, both at first beside assessment (84% increase) and throughout the ED stay (> 100% increase), in improving staff’s self-perceived knowledge and confidence in providing pediatric care, and self-reported communication between staff. Satisfaction levels were high with the PEWS scoring system, flowsheet, escalation aid, and to a lesser extent with the situational awareness tool and communication framework. Reasons for dissatisfaction included increased paperwork and incidence of false-positives. Overall, the majority of providers indicated that implementation of PEWS and completing a PEWS score at triage alongside the Canadian Triage and Acuity Scale (CTAS) added value to pediatric care in the ED. Results also suggest that the intervention is aligned with current practice in the ED.

Conclusion

Our study shows that high-fidelity implementation of PEWS in the ED is feasible. We also show that a multi-component PEWS can be effective in improving pediatric care and be well-accepted by staff. Results and lessons learned from this pilot study are being used to scale up implementation of PEWS in ED settings across the province of British Columbia.

Optimising paediatric afferent component early warning systems: a hermeneutic systematic literature review and model development

OBJECTIVE

To identify the core components of successful early warning systems for detecting and initiating action in response to clinical deterioration in paediatric inpatients.

METHODS

A hermeneutic systematic literature review informed by translational mobilisation theory and normalisation process theory was used to synthesise 82 studies of paediatric and adult early warning systems and interventions to support the detection of clinical deterioration and escalation of care. This method, which is designed to develop understanding, enabled the development of a propositional model of an optimal afferent component early warning system.

RESULTS

Detecting deterioration and initiating action in response to clinical deterioration in paediatric inpatients involves several challenges, and the potential failure points in early warning systems are well documented. Track and trigger tools (TTT) are commonly used and have value in supporting key mechanisms of action but depend on certain preconditions for successful integration into practice. Several supplementary interventions have been proposed to improve the effectiveness of early warning systems but there is limited evidence to recommend their wider use, due to the weight and quality of the evidence; the extent to which systems are conditioned by the local clinical context; and the need to attend to system component relationships, which do not work in isolation. While it was not possible to make empirical recommendations for practice, the review methodology generated theoretical inferences about the core components of an optimal system for early warning systems. These are presented as a propositional model conceptualised as three subsystems: detection, planning and action.

CONCLUSIONS

There is a growing consensus of the need to think beyond TTTs in improving action to detect and respond to clinical deterioration. Clinical teams wishing to improve early warning systems can use the model to consider systematically the constellation of factors necessary to support detection, planning and action and consider how these arrangements can be implemented in their local context.

PROSPERO REGISTRATION NUMBER

CRD42015015326.

A Systems Approach to Design and Implementation of Patient Assessment Tools in the Inpatient Setting

Failure to rescue events, or events involving preventable deaths from complications, are a significant contributor to inpatient mortality. While many interventions have been designed and implemented over several decades, this patient safety issue remains at the forefront of concern for most hospitals. In the first part of this study, the development and implementation of one type of highly studied and widely adopted rescue intervention, algorithm-based patient assessment tools, is examined. The analysis summarizes how a lack of systems-oriented approaches in the design and implementation of these tools has resulted in suboptimal understanding of patient risk of mortality and complications and the early recognition of patient deterioration. The gaps identified impact several critical aspects of excellent patient care, including information-sharing across care settings, support for the development of shared mental models within care teams, and access to timely and accurate patient information. This chapter describes the use of several system-oriented design and implementation activities to establish design objectives, model clinical processes and workflows, and create an extensible information system model to maximize the benefits of patient state and risk assessment tools in the inpatient setting. A prototype based on the product of the design activities is discussed along with system-level considerations for implementation. This study also demonstrates the effectiveness and impact of applying systems design principles and practices to real-world clinical applications.

Improving Efficiency of Pediatric Hospital Medicine Team Daily Workflow

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES

Workflow inefficiencies by medical teams caring for hospitalized patients may affect patient care and team experience. At our institution, complexity and clinical volume of the pediatric hospital medicine (HM) service have increased over time; however, efficient workflow expectations were lacking. We aimed to increase the percentage of HM teams meeting 3 efficiency criteria (70% nurses present for rounds, rounds completed by 11:30 am, and HM attending notes completed by 5 pm) from 28% to 80% within 1 year.

METHODS

Improvement efforts targeted 5 HM teams at a large academic hospital. Our multidisciplinary team, including HM attending physicians, pediatric residents, and nurses, focused on several key drivers: shared expectations, enhanced physician and nursing buy-in and communication, streamlined rounding process, and data transparency. Interventions included (1) daily rounding expectations with prerounds huddle, (2) visible reminders, (3) complex care team scheduled rounds, (4) real-time nurse notification of rounds via electronic platform, (5) workflow redesign, (6) attending feedback and data transparency, and (7) resource attending implementation. Attending physicians entered efficiency data each day through a Research Electronic Data Capture survey. Annotated control charts were used to assess the impact of interventions over time.

RESULTS

Through sequential interventions, the percentage of HM teams meeting all 3 efficiency criteria increased from 28% to 61%. Nursing presence on rounds improved, and rounds end time compliance remained high, whereas attending note completion time remained variable.

CONCLUSIONS

Inpatient workflow for pediatric providers was improved by setting clear expectations and enhancing team communication; competing demands while on service contributed to difficulty in improving timely attending note completion.

Reliability of instruments that measure situation awareness, team performance and task performance in a simulation setting with medical students

OBJECTIVES

The assessment of situation awareness (SA), team performance and task performance in a simulation training session requires reliable and feasible measurement techniques. The objectives of this study were to test the Airways-Breathing-Circulation-Disability-Exposure (ABCDE) checklist and the Team Emergency Assessment Measure (TEAM) for inter-rater reliability, as well as the application of Situation Awareness Global Assessment Technique (SAGAT) for feasibility and internal consistency.

DESIGN

Methodological approach.

SETTING

Data collection during team training using full-scale simulation at a university clinical training centre. The video-recorded scenarios were rated independently by four raters.

PARTICIPANTS

55 medical students aged 22-40 years in their fourth year of medical studies, during the clerkship in anaesthesiology and critical care medicine, formed 23 different teams. All students answered the SAGAT questionnaires, and of these students, 24 answered the follow-up postsimulation questionnaire (PSQ). TEAM and ABCDE were scored by four professionals.

MEASURES

The ABCDE and TEAM were tested for inter-rater reliability. The feasibility of SAGAT was tested using PSQ. SAGAT was tested for internal consistency both at an individual level (SAGAT) and a team level (Team Situation Awareness Global Assessment Technique (TSAGAT)).

RESULTS

The intraclass correlation was 0.54/0.83 (single/average measurements) for TEAM and 0.55/0.83 for ABCDE. According to the PSQ, the items in SAGAT were rated as relevant to the scenario by 96% of the participants. Cronbach's alpha for SAGAT/TSAGAT for the two scenarios was 0.80/0.83 vs 0.62/0.76, and normed χ² was 1.72 vs 1.62.

CONCLUSION

Task performance, team performance and SA could be purposefully measured, and the reliability of the measurements was good.

Implementation of a Communication Bundle for High-Risk Patients

BACKGROUND

Interventions that facilitate early identification and management of hospitalized pediatric patients who are at risk for deterioration are associated with decreased mortality. In our large pediatric hospital with a history of success in decreasing unrecognized deterioration, patients at higher risk of deterioration are termed "watchers." Because communication errors often contribute to unrecognized deterioration, clear and timely communication of watcher status to all team members and contingency planning was desired.

OBJECTIVES

Increase the percentage of eligible watchers with a complete communication, teamwork, and planning bundle within 2 hours of identification from 28% to 80%.

METHODS

Watchers admitted to Hospital Medicine on 2 targeted units were eligible. Stakeholders were educated to facilitate ownership. Daily data analysis enabled real-time failure identification. Automated physician notification provided reminders for timely communication.

RESULTS

The percentage of watchers with a complete situation awareness bundle within 2 hours increased from 28% to 81% and was sustained for more than 2 years. There was no change in rates of rapid response team calls or ICU transfers on our intervention units, but these both increased throughout the hospital. Education facilitated modest improvement, with marked improvements and sustainment through use of technology.

CONCLUSIONS

A novel bundle that included contingency planning and communication expectations was created to improve situation awareness for watchers. Multidisciplinary engagement and use of automated technology facilitated by an electronic health record helped implement and sustain bundle adherence.

Clinician Perceptions of an Early Warning System on Patient Safety

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES

The Pediatric Early Warning Score (PEWS) aims to improve early recognition of clinical deterioration and is widely used despite lacking evidence of effects on outcome measures such as hospital mortality. In this qualitative study, we aimed to study effects of both PEWS and the locally designed risk stratification system by focusing on professionals' perception of their performance. We also sought to gain insight into the perceived effects of PEWS and the risk stratification system on patient safety and to unravel the underlying mechanisms.

METHODS

A single-center cross-sectional observational study whereby 16 semistructured interviews were held with selected health care professionals focusing on perceived effects and underlying mechanisms. Interviews were transcribed verbatim and coded without using a predetermined set of themes.

RESULTS

Coding from semistructured interviews demonstrated that perceived value was related to effects on different levels of Endsley and co-workers' situational awareness (SA) model. PEWS mainly improved level 1 SA, whereas the risk stratification system also seemed to improve levels 2 and 3 SA.

CONCLUSIONS

This study shows clear effects of PEWS on SA among professionals. It also points to the additional value of other risk factor stratification systems to help further improve PEWS functioning.

Nurse Vigilance: A Three-Part Simulation Course to Decrease Cardiopulmonary Arrests Outside Intensive Care Units

Early recognition of and prompt intervention for the deteriorating pediatric patient remains paramount in preventing cardiac arrests from occurring outside intensive care units. To decrease these events, we developed a three-part simulation-based blended learning course consisting of a computer-based training module, a simulation scenario, and follow-up in situ scenarios for inpatient nurses. After initiation of the course, our facility has seen a decrease in the number of codes outside critical care areas.

Emergency Transfers: An Important Predictor of Adverse Outcomes in Hospitalized Children

In-hospital arrests are uncommon in pediatrics, making it difficult to identify the risk factors for unrecognized deterioration and to determine the effectiveness of rapid response systems. An emergency transfer (ET) is a transfer from an acute care floor to an intensive care unit (ICU) where the patient received intubation, inotropes, or ≥3 fluid boluses in the first hour after arrival or before transfer. Improvement science work has reduced ETs, but ETs have not been validated against important health outcomes. This case-control study aimed to determine the predictive validity of an ET for outcomes in a free-standing children's hospital. Controls were matched in terms of age, hospital unit, and time of year. Patients who experienced an ET had a significantly higher likelihood of in-hospital mortality (22% vs 9%), longer ICU length of stay (4.9 vs 2.2 days), and longer posttransfer length of stay (26.4 vs 14.7 days) compared with controls (P < .03 for each).

Assessing risks to paediatric patients: conversation analysis of situation awareness in huddle meetings in England

OBJECTIVES

To analyse the language and conversation used in huddles to gain a deeper understanding of exactly how huddles proceed in practice and to examine the methods by which staff members identify at-risk patients.

SETTING

Paediatric wards in four English hospitals, which were part of a 12-hospital cohort participating in the Situation Awareness for Everyone programme. Wards varied by geographical region and type of hospital.

PARTICIPANTS

Paediatric staff on wards in four English hospitals.

DESIGN

Ethnomethodology and conversation analysis of recorded safety huddles.

METHODS

This study represents the first analysis of huddle interaction. All huddle meetings taking place on four wards across four different hospitals were audio recorded and transcribed. The research question examined was: how are staff identifying at-risk patients in huddles? The ethnomethodological conversation analytic approach was used to analyse the transcripts.

RESULTS

Huddlers made use of categories that allowed them to efficiently identify patients for each other as needing increased attention. Lexicon included the use of 'no concerns', 'the one to watch', 'watcher' and 'acute concerns'. Huddlers used the meetings to go beyond standardised indicators of risk to identify relative risk and movement in patients towards deterioration, relative to the last huddle meeting and to their usual practices. An implicit category, termed here 'pre-concerns', was used by staff to identify such in-between states. Sequential analysis also highlighted the conversational rights that were held implicitly by staff in different clinical roles.

CONCLUSION

Practical implications and recommendations for huddlers are considered. These included that for increased situation awareness, it is recommended that all staff are active in the huddle conversation and not only the most senior team members.

Do safety briefings improve patient safety in the acute hospital setting? A systematic review

AIMS

To synthesize current knowledge about the impact of safety briefings as an intervention to improve patient safety.

BACKGROUND

Improving safety in health care remains an ongoing challenge. There is a lack of evidence underpinning safety enhancing interventions.

DESIGN

Mixed method multi-level synthesis.

DATA SOURCES

Four health literature databases were searched (Cinahl, Medline, Scopus and Health Business Elite) from January 2002 - March 2017.

REVIEW METHODS

Thomas and Harden approach to mixed method synthesis.

RESULTS

Following quality appraisal, 12 studies were included. There was significant heterogeneity in study aims, measures, and outcomes. Findings showed that safety briefings achieved beneficial outcomes and can improve safety culture. Outcomes included improved risk identification, reduced falls, enhanced relationships, increased incident reporting, ability to voice concerns, and reduced length of stay.

CONCLUSION

Healthcare leaders should embrace the potential of safety briefings by promoting their effective use whilst allowing for local adaptation.

Outcomes of 'unrecognised situation awareness failures events' in intensive care unit transfer of children in a Japanese children's hospital

AIM

To demonstrate that unrecognised situation awareness failures events (UNSAFE) transfers are associated with poorer outcomes in the intensive care unit (ICU) at a Japanese children's hospital lacking a rapid response system.

METHODS

This retrospective cohort study was conducted between January 2013 and February 2016. UNSAFE transfers were defined as unplanned in-hospital ward-to-ICU transfers requiring tracheal intubation, vasoactive medications or ≥3 fluid boluses before arrival or in the first 60 min of ICU care. We compared ICU stay duration and mortality between UNSAFE and non-UNSAFE transfers.

RESULTS

There were 2126 admissions to the paediatric ICU during the study period, and 244 cases met the definition of an unscheduled in-hospital transfer (11.5%). Of these, the number of patients transferred following cardiopulmonary resuscitation, in the UNSAFE group and in the non-UNSAFE group were 9 (3.7%), 68 (28%) and 167 (68%), respectively. In the UNSAFE group, the number of patients who required tracheal intubation, initiation of vasoactive medications or ≥ 3 fluid boluses in the first 60 min of ICU care or before arrival in the ICU was 61 (90%), 38 (56%) and 9 (13%), respectively. ICU stay duration and mortality were significantly poorer in the UNSAFE group than in the non-UNSAFE group (9 vs. 4 days, P < 0.0001; 13 vs. 4.2%, odds ratio = 3.5, 95% confidence interval = 1.2-9.8, P = 0.020, respectively).

CONCLUSIONS

Patients who experienced UNSAFE transfers had longer ICU stays and higher mortality, and it may be used as a metric of evaluation of effects of rapid response system implementation.

Efficacy and Safety of Pediatric Critical Care Physician Telemedicine Involvement in Rapid Response Team and Code Response in a Satellite Facility

OBJECTIVES

Satellite inpatient facilities of larger children's hospitals often do not have on-site intensivist support. In-house rapid response teams and code teams may be difficult to operationalize in such facilities. We developed a system using telemedicine to provide pediatric intensivist involvement in rapid response team and code teams at the satellite facility of our children's hospital. Herein, we compare this model with our in-person model at our main campus.

DESIGN

Cross-sectional.

SETTING

A tertiary pediatric center and its satellite facility.

PATIENTS

Patients admitted to the satellite facility.

INTERVENTIONS

Implementation of a rapid response team and code team model at a satellite facility using telemedicine to provide intensivist support.

MEASUREMENTS AND MAIN RESULTS

We evaluated the success of the telemedicine model through three a priori outcomes: 1) reliability: involvement of intensivist on telemedicine rapid response teams and codes, 2) efficiency: time from rapid response team and code call until intensivist response, and 3) outcomes: disposition of telemedicine rapid response team or code calls. We compared each metric from our telemedicine model with our established main campus model.

MAIN RESULTS

Critical care was involved in satellite campus rapid response team activations reliably (94.6% of the time). The process was efficient (median response time 7 min; mean 8.44 min) and effective (54.5 % patients transferred to PICU, similar to the 45-55% monthly rate at main campus). For code activations, the critical care telemedicine response rate was 100% (6/6), with a fast response time (median 1.5 min). We found no additional risk to patients, with no patients transferred from the satellite campus requiring a rapid escalation of care defined as initiation of vasoactive support, greater than 60 mL/kg in fluid resuscitation, or endotracheal intubation.

CONCLUSIONS

Telemedicine can provide reliable, timely, and effective critical care involvement in rapid response team and Code Teams at satellite facilities.

Risk stratification to improve Pediatric Early Warning Systems: it is all about the context

Early recognition of critically ill patients is of paramount importance to reduce pediatric mortality and morbidity. We created a risk stratification system combining vital parameters and predefined risk factors aimed at reducing the risk of unrecognized clinical deterioration compared with conventional Pediatric Early Warning Systems (PEWS). This single-center retrospective case cohort study included infants (gestational age ≥ 37 weeks) to adolescents (aged <18 years) with unplanned pediatric intensive care unit (PICU) admission between April 01, 2014, and February 28, 2018. The sensitivity in the 24 h prior to endpoint of the Pediatric Risk Evaluation and Stratification System (PRESS) was compared with that of the conventional PEWS and calculated as the proportion of study patients who received a high-risk score. Seventy-four PICU admissions were included. PRESS and PEWS sensitivities at 2 h prior to endpoint were 0.70 (95%CI 0.59 to 0.80) and 0.30 (95%CI 0.20 to 0.42) respectively (p < 0.001). Excluding patients with seizures, PRESS sensitivity increased to 0.75 (95%CI 0.64 to 0.85). Forty-nine patients (66%) scored positive on at least one high-risk factor, and "worried sign" was scored in 31 patients (42%).Conclusion: Risk stratification seems advantageous for a faster detection of clinical deterioration, providing opportunity for earlier intervention. What is Known: • Prompt detection of clinical deterioration is of essential importance to reduce morbidity and mortality. • Conventional Pediatric Early Warning Systems (PEWS) have limited sensitivity and a short window of detection of 1 to 2 h. What is New: • Risk stratification based on context factors allows earlier identification of patients at risk, well before deviation of vital signs. • Risk stratification combined with continuous monitoring of deteriorating trends in vital signs could lead to the development of next-generation warning systems achieving true patient safety.

An Analysis of the Efficacy of Different Teaching Modalities in Imparting Adult Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation Skills among First-year Medical Students: A Pilot Study

Introduction

Our current medical curriculum devotes a large percentage of time to knowledge acquisition by means of didactic lectures. Psychomotor skill acquisition takes a back seat. Certain lifesaving skills like basic life support skill training have not even made an appearance in the current curriculum. Equal time distribution to cognitive and psychomotor skills should be allotted for MBBS trainees, which is a very practical subject. Simulation can prove to be a valuable tool in imparting skill training. The present study aims to evaluate the efficacy of different teaching modalities in imparting lifesaving skills among first-year MBBS students.

Materials and methods

This cross-sectional study was conducted among 33 first-year students who consented to participate. Approval was obtained from the institutional ethics committee. The students were divided into three groups, each undergoing either didactic lecture or animation-based videos or simulation studies. Pretest, posttest, and skills tests were administered to them. One-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) and paired t test were the statistical tests employed using SPSS version 21.

Results

The pretest and posttest scores were comparable in the three groups while the improvement in the posttest scores in all the three groups was significant. The skills test was significantly better in the group undergoing simulation training compared to the other groups.

Conclusion

Didactic, animation, and simulation are all good methods in imparting cognitive knowledge, but simulation is the method of choice in imparting psychomotor skills.

Clinical significance

An overhauling of the medical curriculum to include more skills training to the budding doctors using simulation-based techniques is recommended.

How to cite this article

Suseel A, Panchu P, Abraham SV, Varghese S, George T, Joy L. An Analysis of the Efficacy of Different Teaching Modalities in Imparting Adult Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation Skills among First-year Medical Students: A Pilot Study. IJCCM 2019;23(11): 509–512.

The role of the psychologist in the veterans administration's patient aligned care team and huddle: A review, practical recommendations, and a call to action

The Veterans Administration (VA)’s Patient Aligned Care Team (PACT) model has been a cornerstone of primary care in the VA healthcare system and has indicated the need for an organizational cultural shift towards interdisciplinary care. Most of the focus in PACT has been on the traditional providers of the medical model, with little attention focused on the role of the psychologist. This paper examines how psychologists can assist in the PACT model and, in particular, within the team VA huddle. Literature on the PACT model, mental health in PACT, and the advantages of the huddle are reviewed. Lessons learned within a large VA clinic are also discussed. Psychologists’ ability to be a clinician, teambuilder, and system specialist is discussed and how it benefits the PACT and the huddling process. Practical recommendations are made for how to best assist during the huddle, and how to advocate for both the huddle, and for a broader cultural shift in care.

Safety Huddle Intervention for Reducing Physiologic Monitor Alarms: A Hybrid Effectiveness-Implementation Cluster Randomized Trial

BACKGROUND

Monitor alarms occur frequently but rarely warrant intervention.

OBJECTIVE

This study aimed to determine if a safety huddle-based intervention reduces unit-level alarm rates or alarm rates of individual patients whose alarms are discussed, as well as evaluate implementation outcomes.

DESIGN

Unit-level, cluster randomized, hybrid effectiveness-implementation trial with a secondary patient-level analysis.

SETTING

Children's hospital.

PATIENTS

Unit-level: all patients hospitalized on 4 control (n = 4177) and 4 intervention (n = 7131) units between June 15, 2015 and May 8, 2016. Patient-level: 425 patients on randomly selected dates postimplementation.

INTERVENTION

Structured safety huddle review of alarm data from the patients on each unit with the most alarms, with a discussion of ways to reduce alarms.

MEASUREMENTS

Unit-level: change in unit-level alarm rates between baseline and postimplementation periods in intervention versus control units. Patient-level: change in individual patients' alarm rates between the 24 hours leading up to huddles and the 24 hours after huddles in patients who were discussed versus not discussed in huddles.

RESULTS

Alarm data informed 580 huddle discussions. In unit-level analysis, intervention units had 2 fewer alarms/patient-day (95% CI: 7 fewer to 6 more, P = .50) compared with control units. In patient-level analysis, patients discussed in huddles had 97 fewer alarms/patientday (95% CI: 52-138 fewer, P < .001) in the posthuddle period compared with patients not discussed in huddles. Implementation outcome analysis revealed a low intervention dose of 0.85 patients/unit/day.

CONCLUSIONS

Safety huddle-based alarm discussions did not influence unit-level alarm rates due to low intervention dose but were effective in reducing alarms for individual children.

Here and Gone: Rapid Transfer From the General Care Floor to the PICU

BACKGROUND

Children admitted to the general care floor sometimes require acute escalation of care and rapid transfer (RT) to the PICU shortly after admission. In this study, we aim to investigate the characteristics of RTs and the impact RTs have on patient outcomes, including PICU length of stay (LOS), mortality, and emergency transfer defined as critical care interventions occurring within 1 hour on either side of transfer to the PICU.

METHODS

We conducted a 2-year, single-center, retrospective analysis including all patients admitted to the general care floor of a tertiary children's hospital that were subsequently transferred to the PICU, with attention to those transferred within 4 hours of admission, meeting criteria as RTs. Patient-level data and outcomes were tracked. Statistical summaries were stratified by RT or non-RT strata and between-strata comparisons were performed. Significant univariate factors were entered into a multivariate logistic regression model and reduced with statistical significance required for final model inclusion.

RESULTS

Of 450 patients with an unplanned PICU transfer, 105 (23.3%) experienced RTs. Significant factors in the reduced multivariate logistic regression model associated with decreased risk for RT were increased baseline Pediatric Overall Performance Category (P = .046) and PICU origin of admission (P = .012). RT patients had shorter PICU LOSs (2.8 vs 5.5 days, P < .001) compared with non-RT patients despite a higher rate of emergency transfer (15.2% vs 7.5%, P = .018) and no difference in mortality (P = .741).

CONCLUSIONS

In this study, we demonstrate RTs have an increase in emergency transfer rate but no apparent risk of increased PICU LOS or mortality.

Factors to consider in the introduction of huddles on clinical wards: perceptions of staff on the SAFE programme

Objectives

To explore paediatric hospital staff members' perceptions of the emerging benefits and challenges of the huddle, a new safety improvement initiative, as well as the barriers and facilitators to its implementation.

Design

A qualitative study was conducted using semi-structured interviews to explore staff perspectives and experiences.

Setting

Situation Awareness For Everyone (SAFE), a safety improvement programme, was implemented on a sample of National Health Service (NHS) paediatric wards from September 2014 to June 2016. Previously untested in England, the huddle was a central component of the programme.

Participants

Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 76 staff members on four wards ~4 months after the start of the programme.

Results

A thematic analysis showed that staff perceived the huddle as helping to increase their awareness of important issues, improve communication, facilitate teamwork, and encourage a culture of increased efficiency, anticipation and planning on the ward. Challenges of the huddle included added pressure on staff time and workload, and the potential for junior nurses to be excluded from involvement, thus perhaps inadvertently reinforcing medical hierarchies. Staff also identified several barriers and facilitators to the huddle process, including the importance of senior nursing and medical staff leadership and managing staff time and capacity issues.

Conclusions

The findings point towards the potential efficacy of the huddle as a way of improving hospital staff members' working environments and clinical practice, with important implications for other sites seeking to implement such safety improvement initiatives.

Adverse Events in Hospitalized Pediatric Patients

: media-1vid110.1542/5789657761001PEDS-VA_2017-3360Video Abstract BACKGROUND: Patient safety concerns over the past 2 decades have prompted widespread efforts to reduce adverse events (AEs). It is unclear whether these efforts have resulted in reductions in hospital-wide AE rates. We used a validated safety surveillance tool, the Global Assessment of Pediatric Patient Safety, to measure temporal trends (2007-2012) in AE rates among hospitalized children.

METHODS

We conducted a retrospective surveillance study of randomly selected pediatric inpatient records from 16 teaching and nonteaching hospitals. We constructed Poisson regression models with hospital random intercepts, controlling for patient age, sex, insurance, and chronic conditions, to estimate changes in AE rates over time.

RESULTS

Examining 3790 records, reviewers identified 414 AEs (19.1 AEs per 1000 patient days; 95% confidence interval [CI] 17.2-20.9) and 210 preventable AEs (9.5 AEs per 1000 patient days; 95% CI 8.2-10.8). On average, teaching hospitals had higher AE rates than nonteaching hospitals (26.2 [95% CI 23.7-29.0] vs 5.1 [95% CI 3.7-7.1] AEs per 1000 patient days, P < .001). Chronically ill children had higher AE rates than patients without chronic conditions (33.9 [95% CI 24.5-47.0] vs 14.0 [95% CI 11.8-16.5] AEs per 1000 patient days, P < .001). Multivariate analyses revealed no significant changes in AE rates over time. When stratified by hospital type, neither teaching nor nonteaching hospitals experienced significant temporal AE rate variations.

CONCLUSIONS

AE rates in pediatric inpatients are high and did not improve from 2007 to 2012. Pediatric AE rates were substantially higher in teaching hospitals as well as in patients with more chronic conditions.

Safety II Behavior in a Pediatric Intensive Care Unit

: media-1vid110.1542/5763093009001PEDS-VA_2018-0018Video Abstract BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE: Safety I error elimination concepts are focused on retrospectively investigating what went wrong and redesigning system processes and individual behaviors to prevent similar future occurrences. The Safety II approach recognizes complex systems and unpredictable circumstances, mandating flexibility and resilience within systems and among individuals to avoid errors. We hypothesized that in our high-complexity and high-risk PICU, Safety II concepts contribute to its remarkably low adverse drug event rate. Our goal was to identify how this microsystem enacts Safety II.

METHODS

We conducted multidisciplinary focus group sessions with PICU members using nonleading, open-ended questions to elicit free-form conversation regarding how safety occurs in their unit. Qualitatively analyzing transcripts identified system characteristics and behaviors potentially contributing to low adverse drug event rates in PICU. Researchers skilled in qualitative methodologies coded transcripts to identify key domains and common themes.

RESULTS

Four domains were identified: (1) individual characteristics, (2) relationships and interactions, (3) structural and environmental characteristics, and (4) innovation approaches. The themes identified in the first 3 domains are typically associated with Safety I and adapted for Safety II. Themes in the last domain (innovation approaches) were specific to Safety II, which were layered on Safety I to improve results under unusual situations.

CONCLUSIONS

Safety II behavior in this unit was based on strong Safety I behaviors adapted to the Safety II environment plus innovation behaviors specific to Safety II situations. We believe these behaviors can be taught and learned. We intend to spread these concepts throughout the organization.

Improving Patient Safety and Clinician Workflow in the General Care Setting With Enhanced Surveillance Monitoring

Clinical monitoring systems have been implemented in the inpatient hospital setting for decades, with little attention given to systems analysis or assessment of impact on clinician workflow or patient care. This study provides an example of how system-level design and analysis can be applied in this domain, with specific focus on early detection of patient deterioration to mitigate failure to rescue events. Wireless patient sensors and pulse oximetry-based surveillance system monitors with advanced display and information systems capabilities were introduced to 71 general care beds in two units. Nursing workflow was redesigned to integrate use of the new system and its features into patient assessment activities. Patient characteristics, vital sign documentation, monitor alarm, workflow, and system utilization data were collected and analyzed for the period five months before and five months after implementation. Comparison unit data were also collected and analyzed for the same periods. A survey pertaining to staff satisfaction and system performance was administered after implementation. Statistical analysis was performed to examine differences in the before and after data for the target and control units. The enhanced monitoring system received high staff satisfaction ratings and significantly improved key clinical elements related to early recognition of changes in patient state, including reducing average vital signs data collection time by 28%, increasing patient monitoring time (rate ratio 1.22), and availability and accuracy of patient information. Impact on clinical alarms was mixed, with no significant increase in clinical alarms per monitored hour.

Analysing healthcare coordination using translational mobilization

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to introduce translational mobilization theory (TMT) and explore its application for healthcare quality improvement purposes.

Design/methodology/approach

TMT is a generic sociological theory that explains how projects of collective action are progressed in complex organizational contexts. This paper introduces TMT, outlines its ontological assumptions and core components, and explores its potential value for quality improvement using rescue trajectories as an illustrative case.

Findings

TMT has value for understanding coordination and collaboration in healthcare. Inviting a radical reconceptualization of healthcare organization, its potential applications include: mapping healthcare processes, understanding the role of artifacts in healthcare work, analyzing the relationship between content, context and implementation, program theory development and providing a comparative framework for supporting cross-sector learning.

Originality/value

Poor coordination and collaboration are well-recognized weaknesses in modern healthcare systems and represent important risks to quality and safety. While the organization and delivery of healthcare has been widely studied, and there is an extensive literature on team and inter-professional working, we lack readily accessible theoretical frameworks for analyzing collaborative work practices. TMT addresses this gap in understanding.

Inter-shift variation in unscheduled intensive care unit transfers at a children's hospital

BACKGROUND

The early detection of clinical deterioration and the prompt escalation of care is important but may be limited in the general ward, especially at night. Identifying variations between work shifts in the number of unscheduled in-hospital intensive care unit (ICU) transfers and emergency transfers involving life-threatening conditions may help implement targeted interventions to reduce delayed transfers and improve patient safety and outcomes.

METHODS

All unscheduled ICU transfers in a tertiary children's hospital, from January 2013 to December 2016, were reviewed retrospectively. The transfers were categorized into safe transfers and adverse safety events (ASE). The 4 year cumulative numbers for each transfer category in each work shift (day, evening, and night) were assessed for comparison. An ASE was defined as transfer after cardiopulmonary resuscitation or tracheal intubation in the ward, or an unrecognized situation awareness failure event transfer, which was defined as previously reported.

RESULTS

Of 244 unscheduled in-hospital ICU transfers, 167 were safe transfers and 77 were ASE. The number of unscheduled transfers and of ASE was highest during the day shift (n = 133 and 40, respectively) and lowest during the night shift (n = 25 and 12, respectively). In contrast, the proportion of ASE in the unscheduled transfers was higher during the night shift (48%) compared with the day and evening shifts (30% and 31%, respectively).

CONCLUSIONS

The occurrence of unscheduled ICU transfers was disproportionately low during the night shift, whereas the majority of ASE happened during the day shift. Future studies focusing on unravelling the reasons for such variations are warranted.

Development of the Huddle Observation Tool for structured case management discussions to improve situation awareness on inpatient clinical wards

BACKGROUND

'Situation Awareness For Everyone' (SAFE) was a 3-year project which aimed to improve situation awareness in clinical teams in order to detect potential deterioration and other potential risks to children on hospital wards. The key intervention was the 'huddle', a structured case management discussion which is central to facilitating situation awareness. This study aimed to develop an observational assessment tool to assess the team processes occurring during huddles, including the effectiveness of the huddle.

METHODS

A cross-sectional observational design was used to psychometrically develop the 'Huddle Observation Tool' (HOT) over three phases using standardised psychometric methodology. Huddles were observed across four NHS paediatric wards participating in SAFE by five researchers; two wards within specialist children hospitals and two within district general hospitals, with location, number of beds and length of stay considered to make the sample as heterogeneous as possible. Inter-rater reliability was calculated using the weighted kappa and intraclass correlation coefficient.

RESULTS

Inter-rater reliability was acceptable for the collaborative culture (weighted kappa=0.32, 95% CI 0.17 to 0.42), environment items (weighted kappa=0.78, 95% CI 0.52 to 1) and total score (intraclass correlation coefficient=0.87, 95% CI 0.68 to 0.95). It was lower for the structure and risk management items, suggesting that these were more variable in how observers rated them. However, agreement on the global score for huddles was acceptable.

CONCLUSION

We developed an observational assessment tool to assess the team processes occurring during huddles, including the effectiveness of the huddle. Future research should examine whether observational evaluations of huddles are associated with other indicators of safety on clinical wards (eg, safety climate and incidents of patient harm), and whether scores on the HOT are associated with improved situation awareness and reductions in deterioration and adverse events in clinical settings, such as inpatient wards.

The influence of situation awareness training on nurses' confidence about patient safety skills: A prospective cohort study

BACKGROUND

Several studies report that patient safety skills, especially non-technical skills, receive scant attention in nursing curricula. Hence, there is a compelling reason to incorporate material that enhances non-technical skills, such as situation awareness, in nursing curricula in order to assist in the reduction of healthcare related adverse events.

OBJECTIVES

The objectives of this study were to: 1) understand final year nursing students' confidence in their patient safety skills; and 2) examine the impact of situation awareness training on final year nursing students' confidence in their patient safety skills.

METHODS

Participants were enrolled from a convenience sample comprising final year nursing students at a Western Australia university. Self-reported confidence in patient safety skills was assessed with the Health Professional in Patient Safety Survey before and after the delivery of a situation awareness educational intervention. Pre/post educational intervention differences were examined by repeated measures ANOVA.

RESULTS

No significant differences in confidence about patient safety skills were identified within settings (class/clinical). However, confidence in patient safety skills significantly decreased between settings i.e. nursing students lost confidence after clinical placements.

CONCLUSION

The educational intervention delivered in this study did not seem to improve confidence in patient safety skills, but substantial ceiling effects may have confounded the identification of such improvement. Further studies are required to establish whether the findings of this study can be generalised to other university nursing cohorts.

Repeat Rapid Response Events in Children: Characteristics and Outcomes

OBJECTIVE

We describe the characteristics and outcomes of pediatric repeat rapid response events within a single hospitalization. We hypothesized that triggers for repeat rapid response and initial rapid response events are similar, and repeat rapid response events are associated with high prevalence of medical complexity and worse outcomes.

DESIGN

A 3-year retrospective study.

SETTING

High-volume tertiary academic pediatric hospital.

PATIENTS

All rapid response events were reviewed to identify repeat rapid response events.

INTERVENTION

None.

MEASUREMENTS AND MAIN RESULTS

Patient demographics, rapid response triggers, primary clinical diagnoses, illness acuity scores, medical interventions, transfers to ICU, occurrence of critical deterioration, and mortality were reviewed. We reviewed 146 patients with 309 rapid response events (146 initial rapid response and 163 repeat rapid response: 36% < 24 hr, 38% 24 hr to 7 d, and 26% > 7 d after initial rapid response). Median age was 3 years, and 60% were males. Eighty-five percentage of repeat rapid response occurred in medical complexity patients. The triggers for 71% of all repeat rapid response matched with those of initial rapid response. Transfer to ICU occurred in 69 (47%) of initial rapid response and 124 (76%) of repeat rapid response (p < 0.01). The median hospital stay was 11 and 30 days for previously healthy and medical complexity patients, respectively (p = 0.16). ICU readmission at repeat rapid response was associated with longer hospital stay (p < 0.01). Mortality during hospitalization occurred in 14% (all medically complex) of patients after repeat rapid response. Hospital mortality after rapid response is 4.4% per our center's administrative data and 6.7% according to published multicenter data.

CONCLUSIONS

Prevalence of medical complexity was high in patients with repeat rapid response compared with that reported for pediatric hospitalizations. Triggers between initial and repeat rapid response events correlated. Transfer to ICU was more likely after repeat rapid response and among repeat rapid response, events with ICU readmissions had a longer length of ICU and hospital stay. Mortality for the repeat rapid response cohort was higher than that for overall rapid responses in our center and per published reports from other centers.

Effect of a Pediatric Early Warning System on All-Cause Mortality in Hospitalized Pediatric Patients: The EPOCH Randomized Clinical Trial

IMPORTANCE

There is limited evidence that the use of severity of illness scores in pediatric patients can facilitate timely admission to the intensive care unit or improve patient outcomes.

OBJECTIVE

To determine the effect of the Bedside Paediatric Early Warning System (BedsidePEWS) on all-cause hospital mortality and late admission to the intensive care unit (ICU), cardiac arrest, and ICU resource use.

DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS

A multicenter cluster randomized trial of 21 hospitals located in 7 countries (Belgium, Canada, England, Ireland, Italy, New Zealand, and the Netherlands) that provided inpatient pediatric care for infants (gestational age ≥37 weeks) to teenagers (aged ≤18 years). Participating hospitals had continuous physician staffing and subspecialized pediatric services. Patient enrollment began on February 28, 2011, and ended on June 21, 2015. Follow-up ended on July 19, 2015.

INTERVENTIONS

The BedsidePEWS intervention (10 hospitals) was compared with usual care (no severity of illness score; 11 hospitals).

MAIN OUTCOMES AND MEASURES

The primary outcome was all-cause hospital mortality. The secondary outcome was a significant clinical deterioration event, which was defined as a composite outcome reflecting late ICU admission. Regression analyses accounted for hospital-level clustering and baseline rates.

RESULTS

Among 144 539 patient discharges at 21 randomized hospitals, there were 559 443 patient-days and 144 539 patients (100%) completed the trial. All-cause hospital mortality was 1.93 per 1000 patient discharges at hospitals with BedsidePEWS and 1.56 per 1000 patient discharges at hospitals with usual care (adjusted between-group rate difference, 0.01 [95% CI, -0.80 to 0.81 per 1000 patient discharges]; adjusted odds ratio, 1.01 [95% CI, 0.61 to 1.69]; P = .96). Significant clinical deterioration events occurred during 0.50 per 1000 patient-days at hospitals with BedsidePEWS vs 0.84 per 1000 patient-days at hospitals with usual care (adjusted between-group rate difference, -0.34 [95% CI, -0.73 to 0.05 per 1000 patient-days]; adjusted rate ratio, 0.77 [95% CI, 0.61 to 0.97]; P = .03).

CONCLUSIONS AND RELEVANCE

Implementation of the Bedside Paediatric Early Warning System compared with usual care did not significantly decrease all-cause mortality among hospitalized pediatric patients. These findings do not support the use of this system to reduce mortality.

TRIAL REGISTRATION

clinicaltrials.gov Identifier: NCT01260831.

Comparison between Simulation-based Training and Lecture-based Education in Teaching Situation Awareness. A Randomized Controlled Study

RATIONALE

Situation awareness has been defined as the perception of the elements in the environment within volumes of time and space, the comprehension of their meaning, and the projection of their status in the near future. Intensivists often make time-sensitive critical decisions, and loss of situation awareness can lead to errors. It has been shown that simulation-based training is superior to lecture-based training for some critical scenarios. Because the methods of training to improve situation awareness have not been well studied in the medical field, we compared the impact of simulation vs. lecture training using the Situation Awareness Global Assessment Technique (SAGAT) score.

OBJECTIVES

To identify an effective method for teaching situation awareness.

METHODS

We randomly assigned 17 critical care fellows to simulation vs. lecture training. Training consisted of eight cases on airway management, including topics such as elevated intracranial pressure, difficult airway, arrhythmia, and shock. During the testing scenario, at random times between 4 and 6 minutes into the simulation, the scenario was frozen, and the screens were blanked. Respondents then completed the 28 questions on the SAGAT scale. Sample items were categorized as Perception, Projection, and Comprehension of the situation. Results were analyzed using SPSS Version 21.

RESULTS

Eight fellows from the simulation group and nine from the lecture group underwent simulation testing. Sixty-four SAGAT scores were recorded for the simulation group and 48 scores were recorded for the lecture group. The mean simulation vs. lecture group SAGAT score was 64.3 ± 10.1 (SD) vs. 59.7 ± 10.8 (SD) (P = 0.02). There was also a difference in the median Perception ability between the simulation vs. lecture groups (61.1 vs. 55.5, P = 0.01). There was no difference in the median Projection and Comprehension scores between the two groups (50.0 vs. 50.0, P = 0.92, and 83.3 vs. 83.3, P = 0.27).

CONCLUSIONS

We found a significant, albeit modest, difference between simulation training and lecture training on the total SAGAT score of situation awareness mainly because of the improvement in perception ability. Simulation may be a superior method of teaching situation awareness.

NEC-zero recommendations from scoping review of evidence to prevent and foster timely recognition of necrotizing enterocolitis

BACKGROUND

Although decades have focused on unraveling its etiology, necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC) remains a chief threat to the health of premature infants. Both modifiable and non-modifiable risk factors contribute to varying rates of disease across neonatal intensive care units (NICUs).

PURPOSE

The purpose of this paper is to present a scoping review with two new meta-analyses, clinical recommendations, and implementation strategies to prevent and foster timely recognition of NEC.

METHODS

Using the Translating Research into Practice (TRIP) framework, we conducted a stakeholder-engaged scoping review to classify strength of evidence and form implementation recommendations using GRADE criteria across subgroup areas: 1) promoting human milk, 2) feeding protocols and transfusion, 3) timely recognition strategies, and 4) medication stewardship. Sub-groups answered 5 key questions, reviewed 11 position statements and 71 research reports. Meta-analyses with random effects were conducted on effects of standardized feeding protocols and donor human milk derived fortifiers on NEC.

RESULTS

Quality of evidence ranged from very low (timely recognition) to moderate (feeding protocols, prioritize human milk, limiting antibiotics and antacids). Prioritizing human milk, feeding protocols and avoiding antacids were strongly recommended. Weak recommendations (i.e. "probably do it") for limiting antibiotics and use of a standard timely recognition approach are presented. Meta-analysis of data from infants weighing <1250 g fed donor human milk based fortifier had reduced odds of NEC compared to those fed cow's milk based fortifier (OR = 0.36, 95% CI 0.13, 1.00; p = 0.05; 4 studies, N = 1164). Use of standardized feeding protocols for infants <1500 g reduced odds of NEC by 67% (OR = 0.33, 95% CI 0.17, 0.65, p = 0.001; 9 studies; N = 4755 infants). Parents recommended that NEC information be shared early in the NICU stay, when feedings were adjusted, or feeding intolerance occurred via print and video materials to supplement verbal instruction.

DISCUSSION

Evidence for NEC prevention is of sufficient quality to implement. Implementation that addresses system-level interventions that engage the whole team, including parents, will yield the best impact to prevent NEC and foster its timely recognition.

Watcher Initiative Associated With Decrease in Failure to Rescue Events in Pediatric Population

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES

Improved situation awareness may prevent unplanned ICU transfers. Transfers with serious safety issues may be classified as unrecognized situation awareness failure events (UNSAFE) and are associated with intubation, vasopressors, or >3 fluid boluses within 1 hour before or after ICU arrival. Our aim was to decrease the proportion of unplanned ICU transfers that met UNSAFE criteria by 50% in 1 year.

METHODS

We adapted a previously described huddle-based intervention. In May 2015, we started a daily safety brief with hospital-wide representation; concurrently, nurses and residents separately identified watcher patients (ie, patients at risk for UNSAFE transfers) to be reported in the daily safety brief. Watcher patients frequently differed between the groups, so in July 2015, we started twice-daily watcher huddles on a pilot floor. During these huddles, nurses and residents jointly identified watcher patients on the basis of defined criteria and deployed mitigation plans. By March 2016, we implemented these huddles hospital-wide. We reviewed the electronic medical record to categorize all unplanned ICU transfers as safe or UNSAFE. Our outcome was the proportion of unplanned ICU transfers that met UNSAFE criteria.

RESULTS

In the 16-month pre-intervention period, 49 of the 322 unplanned ICU transfers were UNSAFE (median 15.5%); in the 12-month post-intervention period, 13 of the 329 unplanned ICU transfers were UNSAFE (median 3%). These findings represent an 81% reduction in the proportion of UNSAFE transfers.

CONCLUSIONS

Watcher huddles incorporated into the daily inpatient routine can significantly decrease UNSAFE transfers.

Using Quality Improvement to Introduce and Standardize the National Early Warning Score (NEWS) for Adult Inpatients at a Children's Hospital

INTRODUCTION

The population of adults with childhood-onset chronic illness is growing across children's hospitals and constitutes a high risk population. National Early Warning Score (NEWS) is among the most recently validated adult early warning scores (EWSs) for early recognition of and response to clinical deterioration. Our aim was to implement and standardize NEWS scoring in 80% of patients age 21 and older admitted to a children's hospital.

METHODS

Our intervention was tested on a single unit of our children's hospital. The primary process measure was the percentage of NEWS documented within 1 hour of routine nursing assessments, and was tracked using a run chart. Improvement activities focused on effective training, key stakeholder buy-in, increased awareness, real-time mitigation of failures, accountability for adherence, and action-oriented response. We also tracked the distribution of NEWS values and medical emergency team calls.

RESULTS

The percentage of NEWS documented with routine nursing assessments for patients age 21 and over increased from 0% to 90% within 15 weeks and remained at 77% or greater for 17 weeks. Our distribution of NEWS values was similar to previously reported NEWS distribution.

CONCLUSIONS

A nurse-driven adult early warning system for inpatients age 21 and older at a children's hospital can be achieved through a standardized EWS assessment process, incorporation into the electronic health record, and charge nurse and key stakeholder oversight. Furthermore, implementation of an adult EWS being used at a pediatric institution and our distribution of NEWS values were comparable to distribution published from adult hospitals.

A Modified Delphi Study to Identify Factors Associated With Clinical Deterioration in Hospitalized Children

OBJECTIVE

Hospitalized children who are admitted to the inpatient ward can deteriorate and require unplanned transfer to the PICU. Studies designed to validate early warning scoring systems have focused mainly on abnormalities in vital signs in patients admitted to the inpatient ward. The objective of this study was to determine the patient and system factors that experienced clinicians think are associated with progression to critical illness in hospitalized children.

METHODS

We conducted a modified Delphi study with 3 iterations, administered electronically. The expert panel consisted of 11 physician and nonphysician health care providers from hospitals in Canada and the United States.

RESULTS

Consensus was reached that 21 of the 57 factors presented are associated with clinical deterioration in hospitalized children. The final list of variables includes patient characteristics, signs and symptoms in the emergency department, emergency department management, and system factors.

CONCLUSIONS

We generated a list of variables that can be used in future prospective studies to determine if they are predictors of clinical deterioration on the inpatient ward.

Evaluation of a Pediatric Early Warning Score Across Different Subspecialty Patients

OBJECTIVE

To evaluate the ability of a Pediatric Early Warning Score to predict deterioration in different subspecialty patient populations.

DESIGN

Single center, retrospective cohort study. Patients were classified into five groups: 1) cardiac; 2) hematology/oncology/bone marrow transplant; 3) surgical; 4) neurologic; and 5) general medical. The relationship between the Pediatric Early Warning Score and unplanned ICU transfer requiring initiation of specific ICU therapies (intubation, high-flow nasal cannula, noninvasive ventilation, inotropes, or aggressive fluid hydration within 12 hr of transfer) was evaluated.

SETTING

Tertiary care, free-standing, academic children's hospital.

PATIENTS

All hospitalized acute care patients admitted over a 6-month time period (September 2012 to March 2013).

INTERVENTIONS

None.

MEASUREMENTS AND MAIN RESULTS

During the study time period, 33,800 patient-days and 136 deteriorations were evaluated. Area under the curve ranged from 0.88 (surgical) to 0.94 (cardiac). Sensitivities for a Pediatric Early Warning Score greater than or equal to 3 ranged from 75% (surgical) to 94% (cardiology) and number needed to evaluate to find one deterioration was 11.5 (neurologic) to 43 patients (surgical). Sensitivities for a Pediatric Early Warning Score greater than or equal to 4 ranged from 54% (general medical) to 79% (hematology/oncology/bone marrow transplant) and number needed to evaluate of 5.5 (neurologic) to 12 patients (general medical). Sensitivities for a Pediatric Early Warning Score of greater than or equal to 5 ranged from 25% (surgical) to 58% (hematology/oncology/bone marrow transplant) and number needed to evaluate of 3.5 (cardiac, hematology/oncology/bone marrow transplant, neurologic) to eight patients (surgical).

CONCLUSIONS

An elevated Pediatric Early Warning Score is associated with ICU transfer and receipt of ICU-specific interventions in patients across different pediatric subspecialty patient populations.

Improving Pediatric Rapid Response Team Performance Through Crew Resource Management Training of Team Leaders

BACKGROUND

Rapid response teams (RRTs) improve the detection of and response to deteriorating patients. Professional hierarchies and the multidisciplinary nature of RRTs hinder team performance. This study assessed whether an intervention involving crew resource management training of team leaders could improve team performance.

METHODS

In situ observations of RRT activations were performed pre- and post-training intervention. Team performance and dynamics were measured by observed adherence to an ideal task list and by the Team Emergency Assessment Measure tool, respectively. Multiple quartile (median) and logistic regression models were developed to evaluate change in performance scores or completion of specific tasks.

RESULTS

Team leader and team introductions (40% to 90%, P = .004; 7% to 45%, P = .03), floor team presentations in Situation Background Assessment Recommendation format (20% to 65%, P = .01), and confirmation of the plan (7% to 70%, P = .002) improved after training in patients transferred to the ICU (n = 35). The Team Emergency Assessment Measure metric was improved in all 4 categories: leadership (2.5 to 3.5, P < .001), teamwork (2.7 to 3.7, P < .001), task management (2.9 to 3.8, P < .001), and global scores (6.0 to 9.0, P < .001) for teams caring for patients who required transfer to the ICU.

CONCLUSIONS

Targeted crew resource management training of the team leader resulted in improved team performance and dynamics for patients requiring transfer to the ICU. The intervention demonstrated that training the team leader improved behavior in RRT members who were not trained.

Acute Decompensation in Pediatric Cardiac Patients: Outcomes After Rapid Response Events

OBJECTIVE

We studied rapid response events after acute clinical instability outside ICU settings in pediatric cardiac patients. Our objective was to describe the characteristics and outcomes after rapid response events in this high-risk cohort and elucidate the cardiac conditions and risk factors associated with worse outcomes.

DESIGN

A retrospective single-center study was carried out over a 3-year period from July 2011 to June 2014.

SETTING

Referral high-volume pediatric cardiac center located within a tertiary academic pediatric hospital.

PATIENTS

All rapid response events that occurred during the study period were reviewed to identify rapid response events in cardiac patients.

INTERVENTIONS

None.

MEASUREMENTS AND MAIN RESULTS

We reviewed 1,906 rapid response events to identify 152 rapid response events that occurred in 127 pediatric cardiac patients. Congenital heart disease was the baseline diagnosis in 74% events (single ventricle, 28%; biventricle physiology, 46%). Seventy-four percent had a cardiac surgery before rapid response, 37% had ICU stay within previous 7 days, and acute kidney injury was noted in 41% post rapid response. Cardiac and/or pulmonary arrest occurred during rapid response in 8.5%. Overall, 81% were transferred to ICU, 22% had critical deterioration (ventilation or vasopressors within 12 hr of transfer), and 56% received such support and/or invasive procedures within 72 hours. Mortality within 30 days post event was 14%. Significant outcome associations included: single ventricle physiology-increased need for invasive procedures and mortality (adjusted odds ratio, 2.58; p = 0.02); multiple rapid response triggers-increased ICU transfer and interventions at 72 hours; critical deterioration-cardiopulmonary arrest and mortality; and acute kidney injury-cardiopulmonary arrest and need for hemodynamic support.

CONCLUSIONS

Congenital heart disease, previous cardiac surgery, and recent discharge from ICU were common among pediatric cardiac rapid responses. Progression to cardiopulmonary arrest during rapid response, need for ICU care, kidney injury after rapid response, and mortality were high. Single ventricle physiology was independently associated with increased mortality.

Paediatric early warning systems for detecting and responding to clinical deterioration in children: a systematic review

OBJECTIVE

To systematically review the available evidence on paediatric early warning systems (PEWS) for use in acute paediatric healthcare settings for the detection of, and timely response to, clinical deterioration in children.

METHOD

The electronic databases PubMed, MEDLINE, CINAHL, EMBASE and Cochrane were searched systematically from inception up to August 2016. Eligible studies had to refer to PEWS, inclusive of rapid response systems and teams. Outcomes had to be specific to the identification of and/or response to clinical deterioration in children (including neonates) in paediatric hospital settings (including emergency departments). 2 review authors independently completed the screening and selection process, the quality appraisal of the retrieved evidence and data extraction; with a third reviewer resolving any discrepancies, as required. Results were narratively synthesised.

RESULTS

From a total screening of 2742 papers, 90 papers, of varied designs, were identified as eligible for inclusion in the review. Findings revealed that PEWS are extensively used internationally in paediatric inpatient hospital settings. However, robust empirical evidence on which PEWS is most effective was limited. The studies examined did however highlight some evidence of positive directional trends in improving clinical and process-based outcomes for clinically deteriorating children. Favourable outcomes were also identified for enhanced multidisciplinary team work, communication and confidence in recognising, reporting and making decisions about child clinical deterioration.

CONCLUSIONS

Despite many studies reporting on the complexity and multifaceted nature of PEWS, no evidence was sourced which examined PEWS as a complex healthcare intervention. Future research needs to investigate PEWS as a complex multifaceted sociotechnical system that is embedded in a wider safety culture influenced by many organisational and human factors. PEWS should be embraced as a part of a larger multifaceted safety framework that will develop and grow over time with strong governance and leadership, targeted training, ongoing support and continuous improvement.