A RANDOMIZED TRIAL TO MEASURE THE OPTIMAL ROLE OF THE PHARMACIST IN PROMOTING EVIDENCE-BASED ANTIBIOTIC USE IN ACUTE CARE HOSPITALS

2001 ◽  
Vol 17 (2) ◽  
pp. 171-180 ◽  
Author(s):  
George Dranitsaris ◽  
Diana Spizzirri ◽  
Monique Pitre ◽  
Allison McGeer
Keyword(s):  
Acute Care ◽  
Broad Spectrum ◽  
Randomized Clinical Trials ◽  
Intervention Group ◽  
Hospital Setting ◽  
Control Group ◽  
Evidence Based ◽  
Care Hospital ◽  
Broad Spectrum Antibiotics ◽  
The Impact

Background: There is a considerable gap between randomized clinical trials and implementing the results into practice. This is particularly relevant in the use of broad-spectrum antibiotics in hospitals. Hospital pharmacists can be effective vehicles for bridging this gap and promoting evidence-based medicine. To determine the most effective way of using the pharmacist in this role, a prospective cefotaxime intervention study was conducted with randomization incorporated into the design as well as patient-related therapeutic outcomes.Methods: A total of 323 patients who were prescribed cefotaxime were randomized into an intervention or nonintervention group where only the former was challenged by pharmacists for inappropriate cefotaxime usage relative to hospital guidelines. The primary outcome was the appropriateness of cefotaxime prescribing between groups. Logistic regression analysis was then used to identify factors that were associated with successful clinical response.Results: Overall, 94% of orders in the intervention group met cefotaxime dosage criteria compared with 86% in the control group (p = .018). However, there was no impact with respect to promoting cefotaxime use for an appropriate indication (81% vs. 80%; p = .67). There was a trend for improved clinical outcomes in patients who received cefotaxime within hospital guidelines (OR = 1.73; p = .31).Conclusions: The pharmacist as a vehicle for promoting the appropriate use of broad-spectrum antibiotics in the acute care hospital setting can improve the dosing of such agents. However, several barriers to optimizing the impact of the pharmacist were implied by the data. Removing these barriers could increase the pharmacists' utility as an agent for improved patient care.

scholarly journals Evaluation of Clinical Outcomes after Introduction of a Dedicated Infectious Diseases- Critical Care Medicine Service in Critical Care Units

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Polina Trachuk ◽  
Vagish Hemmige ◽  
Ruth Eisenberg ◽  
Kelsie Cowman ◽  
Victor Chen ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Critical Care ◽  
Infectious Diseases ◽  
Clinical Outcomes ◽  
Broad Spectrum ◽  
Critical Care Medicine ◽  
Care Hospital ◽  
Intervention Period ◽  
Broad Spectrum Antibiotics ◽  
Antibiotic Utilization ◽  
The Impact

Abstract Objective Infection is a leading cause of admission to intensive care units (ICU), with critically ill patients often receiving empiric broad-spectrum antibiotics. Nevertheless, a dedicated infectious diseases (ID) consultation and stewardship team is not routinely established. An ID-Critical Care Medicine (ID-CCM) pilot program was designed at a 400-bed tertiary care hospital in which an ID attending was assigned to participate in daily rounds with the ICU team, as well as provide ID consultation on select patients. We sought to evaluate the impact of this dedicated ID program on antibiotic utilization and clinical outcomes in patients admitted to the ICU. Method In this single site retrospective study, we analyzed antibiotic utilization and clinical outcomes in patients admitted to an ICU during post-intervention period from January 1, 2017 to December 31, 2017 and compared it to antibiotic utilization in the same ICUs during the pre-intervention period from January 1, 2015 to December 31, 2015. Results Our data showed a statistically significant reduction in usage of most frequently prescribed antibiotics including vancomycin, piperacillin-tazobactam and cefepime during the intervention period. When compared to pre-intervention period there was no difference in-hospital mortality, hospital length of stay and re-admission. Conclusion With this multidisciplinary intervention, we saw a decrease in the use of the most frequently prescribed broad-spectrum antibiotics without a negative impact on clinical outcomes. Our study shows that the implementation of an ID-CCM service is a feasible way to promote antibiotic stewardship in the ICU and can be used as a strategy to reduce unnecessary patient exposure to broad-spectrum agents.

scholarly journals The Use of Light Sensors in Alcohol Gel Dispensers to Improve Hand Hygiene Compliance of Health Care Workers

2020 ◽  
Vol 41 (S1) ◽  
pp. s411-s411
Author(s):  
Priscila Gonçalves ◽  
Fernando Gatti de Menezes ◽  
Ana Carolina Santiago ◽  
Laura Kataoka ◽  
Paula Fernanda Martineli ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Hand Hygiene ◽  
Direct Observation ◽  
Tertiary Care ◽  
Intervention Group ◽  
Healthcare Personnel ◽  
Control Group ◽  
Care Hospital ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Perception Survey ◽  
Intervention Unit

Background: Improving adherence to hand hygiene (HH) of healthcare workers (HCWs) is a challenge for health institutions, and the use of technologies has been considered an important strategy within this process. Methods: To evaluate the impact of the use of alcohol-based hand rub gel (ABHR) dispensers with light sensors on the adherence to HH by HCWs. This is a prospective quasi-experimental study with comparative analysis between two 4-bed adult intensive care units at a private, tertiary-care hospital conducted over 22 weeks. An approach detection module with an LED lamp was attached to the ABHR dispenser. As a healthcare personnel approached it, the sensor was activated, and a red light turned on as a visual stimulus for HH. The color of the light changed to blue when HH was performed. All ABHR dispensers had electronic counters, but light sensors were installed only in the 4-bed dispensers of the intervention unit. Throughout the period, direct observation of adherence to HH was performed by 4 nurses who had previously been rated with an excellent coefficient of agreement (κ test = 0.951 and 0.902). At the end of the study, a perception survey was performed with the HCWs. Results: The median activation of ABHR dispensers per week was higher in the intervention unit with 1,004 (IQR, 706–1,455) versus 432 (IQR, 350–587) in the control group (P < .001). The same occurred when compared to the median activation per 1,000 patient days, with 53,069 (IQR, 47,575–67,275) versus 19,602 (IQR, 15,909–24,500) in the control group (P < .001). However, there was no evidence of difference in adherence to HH during direct observation between the 2 groups: 51.0% HH compliance (359 of 704) in the control group and 53.8% HH compliance (292 of 543) in the intervention group (P = .330). The same result emerged when we evaluated the “My Five Moments for HH” and by professional category. HCWs (N=66) answered the perception survey: 66.6% stated that lighting devices caught their attention regularly or most of the time and 59% agreed that the devices motivated HH. Conclusions: Using light sensors in ABHR dispensers can be an effective technology for improving HH. This finding was evident in the evaluation of the number of uses of the ABHR dispensers and in the HCW perceptions. Although direct observation did not show statistical evidence of difference between the groups, adherence was higher in the intervention group.Funding: NoneDisclosures: None

scholarly journals The Impact of Patient Education on the Quality of Inpatient Bowel Preparation for Colonoscopy

2010 ◽  
Vol 24 (9) ◽  
pp. 543-546 ◽  
Author(s):  
Greg Rosenfeld ◽  
Darin Krygier ◽  
Robert A Enns ◽  
Janakie Singham ◽  
Holly Wiesinger ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Patient Education ◽  
Bowel Preparation ◽  
Rating Scale ◽  
Tertiary Care ◽  
Intervention Group ◽  
Control Group ◽  
Inpatient Setting ◽  
Care Hospital ◽  
Patient Counselling ◽  
The Impact

BACKGROUND: For patients requiring colonoscopy while admitted to hospital, achieving adequate cleansing of the colon is often difficult.OBJECTIVES: To assess the impact of patient education, in the form of both counselling and written instructions, on bowel cleanliness at colonoscopy.METHODS: A total of 38 inpatients at a tertiary care hospital in Vancouver, British Columbia, who were referred to the gastroenterology service for colonoscopy were enrolled in the present study. Sixteen patients were randomly assigned to the intervention group, while 22 patients comprised the control group. Both groups received a clear liquid diet and 4 L of a commercially available bowel preparation. The intervention group also received a brief counselling session and written instructions outlining the methods and rationale for bowel preparation before colonoscopy. Bowel cleanliness was assessed by the endoscopist using a five-point rating scale.RESULTS: The two groups were similar with respect to demographics, the indication for colonoscopy and findings at colonoscopy. The median bowel cleanliness scores in the control group and the enhanced-instruction group were 3.0 and 2.0, respectively (P=0.001).CONCLUSION: Patient counselling and written instructions are inexpensive, safe and simple interventions. Such interventions are an effective means of optimizing colonoscopy preparation in the inpatient setting.

scholarly journals Effect of discharge conference on rehospitalization among older patients: An analysis of administrative claims data in Japan

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Boyoung Jeon ◽  
Nanako Tamiya ◽  
Xueying Jin ◽  
Satoru Yoshie ◽  
Katsuya Iijima ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Acute Care ◽  
Older Patients ◽  
Claims Data ◽  
Acute Care Hospital ◽  
Control Group ◽  
Administrative Claims ◽  
Care Hospital ◽  
Matching Method ◽  
Term Care ◽  
The Impact

Abstract Background The policy of discharge conference has function of guiding patients to stay at community. This study aims to investigate the effect of a discharge conference on a probability of hospital readmission and readmission costs among older patients in Japan. Methods We included 8,096 individuals admitted to acute care hospitals, using health and long-term care insurance claims data on older patients (age ≥ 75 years) in a suburban city in Japan, from April 2012 to September 2013. To balance the two groups according to whether a patient received a service of discharge conference or not, we used propensity score matching method. We identified readmission within 360 days from discharges and estimated the impact of a discharge conference on the probability of readmission and readmission costs using multiple logistic and linear regression model. Results Among patients who discharged from an acute care hospital, 367 (4.5%) received a discharge conference. Using the matching method, 304 participants in a control group was matched to 304 participants in a discharge conference group. Readmission rate was 21.1% in patients with a discharge conference and 23.0% in those without a discharge conference. Although there was no significant effect of discharge conference on probability of readmission, but it showed significant effect on lower cost per day. Conclusions These results imply a discharge conference has effect on mitigating cost per day of readmission after adjusting for confounding. This study suggests that there are potential possibilities in the policy of discharge conference on reducing the readmission costs per day amongst older patients.

scholarly journals Does Restraint Use Depend on the Hospital? A Multilevel Analysis of Multicentre Prevalence Measurements

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Silvia Thomann ◽  
Sabine Hahn ◽  
Silvia Bauer ◽  
Dirk Richter ◽  
Sandra Zwakhalen
Keyword(s):  
Acute Care ◽  
Random Effect ◽  
Hospital Setting ◽  
Institutional Culture ◽  
Care Hospital ◽  
Hospital Level ◽  
Medical Specialties ◽  
Restraint Use ◽  
Hospitalised Patients ◽  
The Impact

Abstract Background In restraint use in the somatic acute-care hospital setting, routine and institutional culture seem to play an important role. This implies that similar patient situations would be managed with restraints in one hospital, while in another hospital the situation would be managed without restraints. This practice variation appears to be ethically and legally questionable. The influence of organisation-specific factors such as the availability of guidelines is discussed. However, the relevance of such factors at the hospital level has been rarely investigated to date. Therefore, the aims of this study were a) to determine how much variance in restraint use can be explained on the hospital level and b) to examine the impact of organisational factors on restraint use. Methods A secondary data analysis of cross-sectional multicentre data was performed. Data were collected during three quality measurements (2016–2018) in acute-care hospitals in Switzerland and Austria. Hospitalised patients from different medical specialties aged 18 + with informed consent were included. Descriptive analysis and multilevel logistic regression analysis were performed. Results The study included 29,477 patients from a total of 140 hospitals. The 30-day prevalence rate of patients with at least one restraint was 8.7% (n = 2,577). The availability of guidelines regarding restraint use and refresher courses for nursing staff were associated with less restraint use (odds ratios = 0.60 and 0.76). By adding the hospital as a random effect, the explained variance of the model increased from 24–55%. Conclusions The use of restraints varies widely between hospitals, even considering patient characteristics. The identification of situations in which restraints were used out of routine or institutional culture appears to be an important approach in restraint reduction. Investments in appropriate structures and employee knowledge can facilitate providing restraint-free care as much as possible.

scholarly journals Staphylococcus spp Resistance to Chlorhexidine: Is There Any Impact Related to the Routine Use for Hand Hygiene?

2020 ◽  
Vol 41 (S1) ◽  
pp. s390-s391
Author(s):  
Icaro Boszczowski ◽  
William Kazumassa Minami ◽  
Marcia Baraldi ◽  
Ana Paula Marchi ◽  
nia Alves dos Santos ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Hand Hygiene ◽  
Efflux Pump ◽  
Tertiary Care ◽  
Intervention Group ◽  
Sodium Thiosulfate ◽  
Brain Heart Infusion ◽  
Control Group ◽  
Care Hospital ◽  
Significant Difference ◽  
The Impact

Background: Although guidelines recommend the use of chlorhexidine gluconate (CHG) for hand hygiene (HH), the impact of its routine use on antimicrobial resistance is not clear. Objective: To analyze the impact on the CHG susceptibility among isolates obtained from hands of HCW during its routine use for HH. Methods: We conducted a crossover study at 4 medical-surgical wards of a tertiary-care hospital in São Paulo, Brazil. In 2 units (intervention group), we established routine use of CHG for HH. For the other 2 units (control group), regular soap was provided. The availability of alcohol formulation for HH was not changed during the study. Every 4 months we swapped the units, ie, those using CHG changed for regular soap and vice versa. At baseline, we cultured the hands of HCWs. Only nursing staff hands were investigated. For hand culturing, HCWs placed their hands inside a sterile bag containing a solution of phosphate-buffered saline, Tween 80, and sodium thiosulfate. After the solution incubated overnight, it was inoculated onto brain-heart infusion. Next, it was plated on McConkey and Mannitol agar. MALDI-TOF was used for identification. Agar dilution was performed for Staphylococcus spp. We selected all Staphylococcus spp with MIC ≥ 8 and performed inhibition of efflux pump test. For isolates that showed a decrease of 2 dilutions, we searched the gene qacA/B by polymerase chain reaction. Results: We obtained 262 samples from HCW hands yielding 428 isolates. The most frequent genera were Staphylococcus spp (58%), Acinetobacter spp (8%), Enterobacter spp (8%), Stenotrophomonas spp (5%), Klebsiella spp (4%), Pseudomonas spp (3%), and others (14%). Staphylococcus spp were less frequent in the intervention compared to control group (43% vs 61%; OR, 0.48; 95% CI, 0.29–0.69; P = .005). Among all Staphylococcus spp, the proportion of chlorhexidine resistance (RCHG; MIC ≥ 8) was 12%. All resistant isolates recovered susceptibility after inoculation with pump-efflux inhibitor. For pump-inhibited isolates, 53% had the gene qacA/B amplified by PCR. We did not investigate RCHG among gram-negative isolates. There was a nonsignificant increase in Staphylococcus spp RCHG in the intervention group (4% to 6%; P = .90). Healthcare-acquired infection rates did not change significantly during the intervention. The consumption of CHG increased from 7.3 to 13.9 mL per patient day. Conclusions: We did not detect a significant difference in RCHG during the routine use of CHG for HH, although we observed increasing resistance. Further investigation is needed to clarify other reasons for increasing MIC to CHG.Funding: NoneDisclosures: None

scholarly journals The Impact of the FilmArray-Based Detection of Microbial Pathogens from Positive Blood Culture Vials on the Time to Optimal Antimicrobial Regimen in Intensive Care Units of the Helios University Clinic Wuppertal, Germany

2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (24) ◽  
pp. 5880
Author(s):  
Jannik Schumann ◽  
Ulrike Johanns ◽  
Parviz Ahmad-Nejad ◽  
Beniam Ghebremedhin ◽  
Gabriele Woebker
Keyword(s):  
Length Of Stay ◽  
Blood Culture ◽  
Antimicrobial Therapy ◽  
Prospective Trial ◽  
Intervention Group ◽  
Control Group ◽  
Care Hospital ◽  
Maldi Tof ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Antimicrobial Regimen

The role of empirical therapy and time to first effective treatment, including the antimicrobial stewardship program, are decisive in patients presenting with bloodstream infections (BSI). The FilmArray® Blood Culture Identification Panel (FA BCID 1.0) detects 24 bacterial and fungal pathogens as well as 3 resistance genes from positive blood cultures in approximately 70 min. In this paper, we evaluate the impact of the additional FA BCID analysis on the time to an optimal antimicrobial therapy and on the length of stay in the ICU, ICU mortality, and PCT level reduction. This retro-/prospective trial was conducted in BSI patients in the ICU at a German tertiary care hospital. A total of 179 individual patients with 200 episodes of BSI were included in the prospective intervention group, and 150 patients with 170 episodes of BSI in the retrospective control group. In the intervention group, BSI data were analyzed including the MALDI-TOF MS (matrix assisted laser desorption ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry) and FA BCID results from January 2019 to August 2020; the data from the control group, including the MALDI-TOF results, were collected retrospectively from the year 2018. The effective and appropriate antimicrobial regimen occurred in a median of 17 hours earlier in the intervention versus control group (p = 0.071). Furthermore, changes in the antimicrobial regimens of the intervention group that did not immediately lead to an optimal therapy occurred significantly earlier by a median of 24 hours (p = 0.029). Surrogate markers, indicating an earlier recovery of the patients from the intervention group, such as length of stay at the ICU, duration of mechanical ventilation, or an earlier reduction in PCT level, were not significantly affected. However, mortality did not differ between the patient groups. A postulated reduction of the antimicrobial therapy, in those cases in which coagulase-negative Staphylococcus species were identified, did occur in the control group, but not in the intervention group (p = 0.041). The implementation of FA BCID into the laboratory workflow can improve patient care by optimizing antimicrobial regimen earlier in BSI patients as it provides rapid and accurate results for key pathogens associated with BSI, as well as important antimicrobial resistance markers, e.g., mecA or vanA.

scholarly journals Placebo response and effect in randomized clinical trials: meta-research with focus on contextual effects

Trials ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 22 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Sigurlaug H. Hafliðadóttir ◽  
Carsten B. Juhl ◽  
Sabrina M. Nielsen ◽  
Marius Henriksen ◽  
Ian A. Harris ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Treatment Effect ◽  
Randomized Clinical Trials ◽  
Contextual Factors ◽  
Cochrane Review ◽  
Intervention Group ◽  
Specific Effect ◽  
Contextual Effects ◽  
Control Group ◽  
Clinical Conditions ◽  
The Impact

Abstract Background Contextual effects (i.e., placebo response) refer to all health changes resulting from administering an apparently inactive treatment. In a randomized clinical trial (RCT), the overall treatment effect (i.e., the post-treatment effect in the intervention group) can be regarded as the true effect of the intervention plus the impact of contextual effects. This meta-research was conducted to examine the average proportion of the overall treatment effect attributable to contextual effects in RCTs across clinical conditions and treatments and explore whether it varies with trial contextual factors. Methods Data was extracted from trials included in the main meta-analysis from the latest update of the Cochrane review on “Placebo interventions for all clinical conditions” (searched from 1966 to March 2008). Only RCTs reported in English having an experimental intervention group, a placebo comparator group, and a no-treatment control group were eligible. Results In total, 186 trials (16,655 patients) were included. On average, 54% (0.54, 95%CI 0.46 to 0.64) of the overall treatment effect was attributable to contextual effects. The contextual effects were higher for trials with blinded outcome assessor and concealed allocation. The contextual effects appeared to increase proportional to the placebo effect, lower mean age, and proportion of females. Conclusion Approximately half of the overall treatment effect in RCTs seems attributable to contextual effects rather than to the specific effect of treatments. As the study did not include all important contextual factors (e.g., patient-provider interaction), the true proportion of contextual effects could differ from the study’s results. However, contextual effects should be considered when assessing treatment effects in clinical practice. Trial registration PROSPERO CRD42019130257. Registered on April 19, 2019.

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