Subduing the killer - sepsis; through simulation

Addressing Gaps in Nurses' Knowledge of Sepsis: A Literature Review

Sepsis is a dangerous and costly health care condition requiring prompt identification and emergency treatment. Bedside nurses have a crucial role in these early steps. Nurses should receive effective and timely education on identifying and treating sepsis in their patient populations. The purpose of this article is to review the literature and to identify how current sepsis education methods are addressing the gaps in nursing knowledge of sepsis. PubMed and CINAHL databases were used to search the literature. After inclusion and exclusion criteria were applied, nine articles were chosen for synthesis. Synthesis revealed three major themes: (a) assessing nurse sepsis knowledge, (b) using electronic learning methods for education, and (c) incorporating simulation into sepsis training. Gaps in the literature were also identified. [J Contin Educ Nurs. 2021;52(1):43-46.].

Improving Care of Skilled Nursing Patients: Implementation of Early Sepsis Recognition

An aging population with underlying health conditions, such as heart disease and diabetes, is at high risk for infections, including pneumonia, influenza, and coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). In particular, the number of individuals in skilled nursing and long-term care facilities is increasing and older adults are at greatest risk. Research reveals these infections can lead to sepsis, septic shock, and death unless detected early through a sepsis screening process. The current quality improvement project demonstrates the capabilities of an early sepsis recognition screening tool in a skilled nursing facility and explores process changes required to operate facilities with high quality care. [Journal of Gerontological Nursing, 47(8), 37-44.].

Safer Surgical Practice: a Guide for Surgeons (not just for pandemics)

The surgical working environment has changed considerably since the World Health Organisation (WHO) declared the coronavirus outbreak, COVID-19 (SARS-CoV-2), a pandemic on 11 March 2020. Measures remain in place to reduce the risk of spread from patients to surgeons, nosocomial infection and amongst healthcare workers. However, despite these protective measures, healthcare staff are at risk with the number of health workforce deaths increasing worldwide. This article sets out to explore the roles and responsibilities of the surgeon during these extraordinary times and discuss how we can improve our practice to reduce the risk of harm to patients, surgical staff, and ourselves.

Generational and occupational differences in human factors knowledge and awareness: a comparison study

INTRODUCTION

Increasing healthcare sector litigation, accountability and governance has resulted in the identification of human factors (HF) as a common source of error. Both NHS and military doctors must have awareness of HF to enhance safety and productivity. There is limited published evidence examining knowledge of HF in these two healthcare professional groups.

METHODS

Doctors of all grades and specialties across the NHS and 3 military groups including the Defence Deanery within the UK were invited to complete a 10-item web-based survey. Questions focused on training undertaken, HF knowledge and potential future training needs.

RESULTS

The survey link was emailed to 250 military and 1400 NHS doctors, 191 military and 776 NHS responded (response rate: 76% and 55%, respectively). Military doctors above foundation trainees are more familiar with HF, have had more training and recognise a requirement for additional training. Military foundation trainees had similar responses to their NHS colleagues. Doctors who had not undertaken any HF training are less likely to appreciate its value, with almost 60% of senior NHS doctors reporting no training. Foundation trainees have more training in HF than their senior peers when military seniors are excluded and more frequently identified a need for further training. Junior doctors identified stress, fatigue, communication and leadership more frequently, with seniors identifying work environment and music in theatre correctly more often.

CONCLUSION

Non-training grade doctors are less likely to seek HF training. Military doctors are more familiar with HF and have undertaken more training. Given the role of HF in communication, human error, potential litigation, stress, conflict and gross negligence manslaughter convictions, further education is vital.