scholarly journals Reducing door-to-needle times in stroke thrombolysis to 13 min through protocol revision and simulation training: a quality improvement project in a Norwegian stroke centre

2019 ◽  
Vol 28 (11) ◽  
pp. 939-948 ◽  
Author(s):  
Soffien Chadli Ajmi ◽  
Rajiv Advani ◽  
Lars Fjetland ◽  
Kathinka Dehli Kurz ◽  
Thomas Lindner ◽  
...  

BackgroundIn eligible patients with acute ischaemic stroke, rapid revascularisation is crucial for good outcome. At our treatment centre, we had achieved and sustained a median door-to-needle time of under 30 min. We hypothesised that further improvement could be achieved through implementing a revised treatment protocol and in situ simulation-based team training sessions. This report describes a quality improvement project aiming to reduce door-to-needle times in stroke thrombolysis.MethodsAll members of the acute stroke treatment team were surveyed to tailor the interventions to local conditions. Through a review of responses and available literature, the improvement team suggested changes to streamline the protocol and designed in situ simulation-based team training sessions. Implementation of interventions started in February 2017. We completed 14 simulation sessions from February to June 2017 and an additional 12 sessions from November 2017 to March 2018. Applying Kirkpatrick’s four-level training evaluation model, participant reactions, clinical behaviour and patient outcomes were measured. Statistical process control charts were used to demonstrate changes in treatment times and patient outcomes.ResultsA total of 650 consecutive patients, including a 3-year baseline, treated with intravenous thrombolysis were assessed. Median door to needle times were significantly reduced from 27 to 13 min and remained consistent after 13 months. Risk-adjusted cumulative sum charts indicate a reduced proportion of patients deceased or bedridden after 90 days. There was no significant change in balancing measures (stroke mimics, fatal intracranial haemorrhage and prehospital times).ConclusionsImplementing a revised treatment protocol in combination with in situ simulation-based team training sessions for stroke thrombolysis was followed by a considerable reduction in door-to-needle times and improved patient outcomes. Additional work is needed to assess sustainability and generalisability of the interventions.

2017 ◽  
Vol 182 (3) ◽  
pp. e1762-e1766 ◽  
Author(s):  
Monica A. Lutgendorf ◽  
Carmen Spalding ◽  
Elizabeth Drake ◽  
Dennis Spence ◽  
Jason O. Heaton ◽  
...  

CJEM ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 20 (S1) ◽  
pp. S93-S93
Author(s):  
L. Mews ◽  
D. O’Dochartaigh ◽  
M. Chan ◽  
T. Brown ◽  
A. Robb ◽  
...  

Introduction: High fidelity in-situ simulation has been found to detect system deficiencies, equipment failures, and conditions predisposing to medical errors, also known as latent safety threats (LST). What is not well reported is whether these LSTs are effectively managed. As a part of an ongoing quality improvement project, multidisciplinary, in-situ simulations were conducted across emergency departments (ED) in the Edmonton zone with the aim to identify LST and subsequently manage them to improve patient care. Methods: In 2017 simulations were conducted at EDs in the Edmonton Zone (N=10). Following each simulation, a cross sectional, survey based assessment tool, was completed by participants to identify LST. These LST were shared with the site clinical nurse educator and/or site manager and a management plan made. Two to six months follow-up was made to track progress. For reporting, LST were grouped into themes, progress on LST were coded as either resolved, ongoing, or not managed. Results: A total of 112 LST were identified through 18 separate simulations. The most commonly identified LTS were: resuscitation resource required (n 23), lack of staff training (21), equipment not immediately available (20), IT resource required (8), medication not immediately available (6), staff requiring familiarization (5), medication resource required (5), IT issue (4), large equipment needed (4), small equipment needed (4), lack of staff resource (3), medication needed, (3), equipment malfunction (2), Environment cluttered (2), non-appropriate resource removed (2). Site follow-up identified a total of 52 LST that where resolved, and 60 LST that had ongoing work to manage them. No occurrences of LST not being managed were identified. Conclusion: Simulation was used to effectively identify LST. Creating a structured plan and follow up allowed many LST to be resolved and effectively managed. In 2018 simulation will reassess if LST remain.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Meghan Carides

Ambulation is the single most important nursing intervention in the prevention of postoperative complications. It is also a key component in maintaining optimal patient outcomes. Current literature has revealed that when ambulation is initiated early there is a marked decrease in pain, length of hospital admission, and overall complication rates. However, even with this depth of evidence early postoperative ambulation on the two surgical units at a teaching hospital in Rhode Island, patient ambulation continues to be inconsistent. The purpose of this quality improvement project is to improve nursing knowledge regarding early ambulation after surgery for the prevention of post-operative complications. This project utilized a pretest, educational in-service intervention, and posttest design. Seventeen out of a possible 22 surgical nurses participated in this project (N= 17, 77%). The educational in-service sessions combined information from an extensive literature review in the form of a 10-minute Power Point presentation. Pre and post tests were made up of 5 knowledge-based and 5 opinion-based questions. The mean scores for the pretest were 74% while the mean scores for the posttest were 95.2%. There was a 35% increase in overall scores following the educational intervention. APRNs play a pivotal role in establishing and implementing educational programs. This project aimed to recognize a need for ongoing education about postoperative ambulation for the surgical unit nurses. Educational programs about postoperative ambulation and complication prevention should be routinely incorporated in future trainings to ensure improved nursing knowledge and patient outcomes.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rupert Biacora Laco ◽  
Wilma Powell Stuart

ABSTRACT Introduction Lack of high-quality cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) and effective team communication during cardiovascular emergencies could lead to poor patient outcomes and adverse events. Studies have shown that CPR psychomotor skills declined 3 months and plateaued up to 6 months after the completion of CPR training. The Urgent Care Clinic (UCC) interprofessional staff did not receive consistent training on CPR and teamwork skills beyond what was received from the biannual American Red Cross (ARC) Basic Life Support (BLS) training and semiannual Resuscitative Care Function mock cardiac arrest. Most participants took their last CPR training for more than 6 months (n = 12, 67%), between 3 and 6 months (n = 2, 11%), and within the last 3 months before the pre-intervention period (n = 4, 22%). The purpose of the project was to form an interprofessional team to lead the development and implementation of a theory- and evidence-based simulation-based training program to improve CPR and teamwork skills while enhancing patient safety and emergency medical readiness in the hospital and UCC. Materials and Methods The quality improvement project utilized an interprofessional in situ simulation-based training to improve participants’ CPR and teamwork skills. The UCC physicians, nurses, and medical technicians completed a CPR and teamwork simulation-based training with a high-fidelity mannequin, pre-simulation preparation, briefing, and debriefing. The project collected pre-intervention and post-intervention data for CPR competence and teamwork perceptions. A paired t-test was used to assess differences in participant CPR skills and Team Strategies to Enhance Performance and Patient Safety Teamwork Perceptions Questionnaire responses before and after the simulation-based training intervention. The 59th Medical Wing and the University of South Alabama Institutional Review Boards approved the quality improvement project. Results A total of 18 participants completed the ARC BLS and Team Strategies to Enhance Performance and Patient Safety simulation-based training. Most participants were medical technicians (n = 8, 44%), followed by physicians (n = 5, 28%) and (n = 5, 28%) nurses. There was a statistical significance in participants’ ARC BLS scores, with a pre-simulation mean score of 45.42 and a post-simulation mean score of 89.21 (P = .000, 95% CI = 36.89-50.68). For Team Strategies to Enhance Performance and Patient Safety teamwork perceptions, there was a statistically significant increase in the participants’ teamwork perception levels, with a pre-simulation mean score of 4.61 and a post-simulation mean score of 4.86 (P = .000, 95% CI = 0.20-0.31). Conclusions Our results demonstrated that the participants’ ARC BLS scores and UCC’s team perceptions have increased after in situ simulation-based training. We did not assess the ideal time for re-training. We recommend a 3- to 6-month post-training assessment to determine the optimal time for a CPR and teamwork refresher training. A high-fidelity simulation-based program with trained facilitators that assess the healthcare providers’ CPR and teamwork skills could enhance the delivery of high-quality CPR and execution of effective teamwork skills in their workplace.


Author(s):  
Gillian Hardman ◽  
Neil Berrigan ◽  
Gillian Liddle ◽  
Mark Hatch ◽  
Mike Dickinson ◽  
...  

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document