Imaging intensive care patients: multidisciplinary conferences as a quality improvement initiative to reduce medical error.
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ABSTRACT:
SUBMITTER: Muench G
PROVIDER: S-EPMC9636350 | biostudies-literature | 2022 Nov
REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature
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Imaging intensive care patients: multidisciplinary conferences as a quality improvement initiative to reduce medical error.
Muench Gloria G Witham Denis D Rubarth Kerstin K Zimmermann Elke E Marz Susanne S Praeger Damaris D Wegener Viktor V Nee Jens J Dewey Marc M Pohlan Julian J
Insights into imaging 20221104 1
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Project description:BackgroundA multidisciplinary approach has been recommended for the management of patients with infective endocarditis. We evaluated the impact of multidisciplinary case conferences on morbidity, mortality, and quality of care for these patients.MethodsWe conducted a quasi-experimental study of consecutive patients admitted for infective endocarditis before (2013/10/1-2015/10/12, n = 97) and after (2015/10/13-2017/11/30, n = 80) implementation of case conferences to discuss medical and surgical management. These occurred as face-to-face discussions or electronically (for non-complex patients), and included physicians from cardiac surgery, cardiology, critical care, infectious diseases and neurology. We assessed process-of-care and clinical outcomes, with the primary outcome being complications up to 90 days after hospital discharge.ResultsA case conference was held for 80/80 (100%) of patients in the post-intervention group. After the intervention, more patients received inpatient cardiology assessment (81.3% [post-intervention] vs. 63.9% [pre-intervention], p = 0.01), and more patients with definite infective endocarditis underwent cardiac surgery treatment (44.6% vs. 21.7%, p = 0.007). All pre-intervention and post-intervention patients received guideline-concordant antimicrobial therapy. There was no difference in rates of complications (40.0% vs. 51.5%, p = 0.13) or mortality up to 90 days after hospital discharge (26.3% vs. 17.5%, p = 0.20). In multivariable analyses, the intervention was not associated with differences in mortality (odds ratio 1.87, 95% confidence interval 0.88-3.99) or a composite measure of complications and mortality (odds ratio 0.86, 95% confidence interval 0.46-1.58).ConclusionWe successfully implemented a standardized multidisciplinary case conference protocol for patients with infective endocarditis. This intervention had no detectable effect on complications or mortality.
| S-EPMC6181397 | biostudies-literature
Project description:AimsTo promote effective methods to improve overutilization patterns of acid-suppressive therapy in hospitalized patients and to evaluate the impact of multidisciplinary team efforts to reduce inappropriate use of stress ulcer prophylaxis in low-risk patients.MethodsA multidisciplinary quality improvement initiative incorporating education, medication use reviews and reconciliation, and pharmaceutical intervention was implemented in June 2018 for surgical patients hospitalized via emergency department. For the pre-post analysis and time series analysis, patients admitted during April and May were classified into the pre-intervention cohort and those admitted during July and August into the post-intervention cohort.ResultsThree hundred and seventeen patients were included in this study (153 and 164 in the pre- and post-intervention cohorts, respectively). The multidisciplinary program was effective in reducing overuse of stress ulcer prophylaxis and healthcare expenses associated with it. Biweekly education on risk factors warranting stress ulcer prophylaxis was provided for clinicians, and acid-suppressive therapy was removed from a preset list of admission orders. The incidence of inappropriate prophylaxis use declined substantially following intervention in overall patients (OR = 0.51, P = 0.01) and a significant decrease was primarily observed among non-ICU patients (OR = 0.50, P = 0.01). Interrupted time series analysis confirmed the significant decline in inappropriate use post intervention (coefficient = -0.63, P < 0.001). The total healthcare expenses associated with such overuse decreased by 58.5% from US$ 19.39 to US$ 8.04 per 100 patient-days.ConclusionsOur multidisciplinary team efforts were associated with improvement in stress ulcer prophylaxis overuse patterns, resulting in a substantial decrease in the incidence of inappropriate use, especially in general wards, and associated healthcare costs.
| S-EPMC7163370 | biostudies-literature
Project description:BACKGROUND:Bronchopulmonary Dysplasia (BPD) is the most common prematurity complication. Although several practices have been proposed for BPD prevention, none of these in isolation prevent BPD. METHODS:Our initiative focused on two key drivers: oxygen management and noninvasive ventilation strategies. We created best practice guidelines and followed outcome measures using Shewhart control charts. RESULTS:PDSAs of protocols preceded a large-scale rollout of a "0.21 by 28" campaign in 2014 leading to a special cause reduction in the "any BPD" rate, and a decrease in severe BPD (from 57 to 29%). At the end of 2017, we reinvigorated the project, which led to dramatic decreases in the "any BPD" rate to 41% and the "severe BPD" rate to 21%. CONCLUSIONS:A multidisciplinary QI initiative focused on process improvement geared towards the pathophysiological contributors of BPD has successfully reduced the rate of BPD in an all referral level IV NICU.
| S-EPMC7223819 | biostudies-literature
Project description:We conduct a retrospective study of patients with unplanned extubation (UE) in adult intensive care units (ICU) at a medical center. In 2001, a multidisciplinary team of intensivists, senior residents, nurses, and respiratory therapists was established at Chi Mei Medical Center. The improvement interventions, implemented between 2001 and 2015, were organized around 8 key areas: standardizing procedures, improving communication skills, revising sedation and weaning protocols, changing strategies for restraints, establishing a task force for identifying and managing high-risk patients, using new quality-improvement models as breakthrough series and team resource management, using the strategy of accountability without assigning blame, and changing a new method to secure endotracheal tube. We measured the outcome as the annual event and the rate of UE. During this 15-year period, there were 1404 episodes of UE, with 44,015 episodes of mechanical ventilation (MV) (319,158 ventilator-days). The overall rate of UE was 3.19/100 ventilated patients (4.40/1000 ventilator-days). In 2001, there were 188 episodes of UE and the rate of UE was 6.82/100 ventilated patients or 9.0/1000 ventilator-days. After this continue quality improvement project had been implemented, the annual number of episodes of UE declined to 27, and the rate fell to 0.95/100 ventilated patients or 1.36/1000 ventilator-days in 2015. Overall, the trend analysis showed the change was significant with P?<?.0001. In conclusion, UE in adult ICU can be continuously and effectively reduced using multidisciplinary and sequential quality improvement interventions.
| S-EPMC5502132 | biostudies-literature
Project description:Patients following cardiac surgery commonly experience post-operative delirium (POD) during their postoperative hospital stay. A multifaceted, specialty wide, quality improvement (QI) project was undertaken for patients experiencing POD. The goal was to develop a reduction in POD care bundle (rPOD-a structured patient care program) that encompasses efficient preoperative risk factor identification and a postoperative patient-care process to ensure early POD identification and treatment. The following steps were taken to implement the rPOD care bundle including: (a) Developing a quality driven, evidence-based guideline for the perioperative cardiac surgery health care team, (b) identifying and addressing local barriers to implementation, (c) selecting performance measures to assess intervention adherence and patient outcomes, and (d) ensuring that all patients receive the interventions through staff engagement and education, and regular project evaluation. Trends of process measures and quality improvement measures were examined. An increasing trend in the rate of postoperative delirium screening during implementation of rPOD intervention was demonstrated. This quality improvement study provides a bases for future postoperative delirium reduction interventions.
| S-EPMC8628740 | biostudies-literature
Project description:Initiatives to improve hypertension control within academic medical centers and closed health systems have been extensively studied, but large community-wide quality improvement (QI) initiatives have been both less common and less successful in the United States. The authors examined a community-wide QI initiative across 226 843 patients from 198 practices in nine counties across upstate New York to improve hypertension control and reduce disparities. The QI initiative focused on (a) providing population and practice-level comparative data, (b) community engagement, especially in underserved communities, and (c) practice-level quality improvement assistance, but was not designed to examine causality of specific components. Across the nine counties, hypertension control rates improved from 61.9% in 2011 to 69.5% in 2016. Improvements were greatest among whites (73.7%-81.5%) and more modest among black patients (58.8%-64.7%). The authors noted a considerable improvement in BP within the group of patients with the highest risk (defined as a BP ≥ 160/100) and a decrease in disparities within this group. The quality collaborative identified five key lessons to help guide future community initiatives: (a) anticipate a plateauing of response; (b) distinguish the needs of disparate populations and create subpopulation-specific strategies to address and reduce disparities; (c) recognize the variation across low SES practices; (d) remain open to the refinement of outcome measures; and (e) continually seek best practices and barriers to success. Overall, a large community-wide QI initiative, involving multiple different stakeholders, was associated with improvements in BP control and modest reductions in some targeted disparities.
| S-EPMC8030610 | biostudies-literature
Project description:Introduction: Childhood nephrotic syndrome is frequently seen in pediatric nephrology practice and often requires patient hospitalization for management. Numerous complications of this disease can be managed in an outpatient setting if brought to the attention of the medical team in a timely manner. Outpatient management will reduce healthcare cost and improve patient safety. The goal of this quality improvement initiative was to reduce admissions for nephrotic syndrome relapse from 8 to <5 admissions at a single center in a 3-month period. Methods: Fish-bone analysis was used to determine barriers to early recognition of relapse and successful outpatient care. Patient education about the disease process was identified as the primary barrier. A standardized approach to patient education as well as educational materials were developed. Champions were identified within each stakeholder group to train and disseminate the new process. Admission counts were compared from 3 years prior to implementation to 2 years post-implementation. Clinic visits for nephrotic syndrome were tallied as a balancing measure. Patients were surveyed in the outpatient clinics about whether they had ever received the education as a process measure. Results: Admission counts were reduced and met goal for the first 3 quarters that were examined; however, the number of admissions went above target in the last quarter. Clinic visit numbers did not change over the study period. Process measure showed that 75-80% of families were provided with nephrotic syndrome education. Conclusion: A standardized approach to patient and family education about idiopathic nephrotic syndrome can reduce admissions for management of relapse. This will reduce healthcare expenditure as well as improve patient safety.
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Project description:IntroductionPediPlace, a busy pediatric not-for-profit clinic in Lewisville, Tex., struggles with prolonged patient wait times. This quality improvement (QI) project aimed to reduce appointment lengths and improve the patient experience.MethodsPediPlace introduced 3 interventions: improved patient tracking to measure timing on the electronic health record interface, elimination of script repetition between medical assistants and providers, and patient art kits.ResultsFrom over 2,000 surveys indicated that patients were more satisfied; the percentage of negative survey comments decreased from 20% in 2017 and 2018 to under 10% in 2019. The overall rating of the clinic rose from 3.8 to 4.75 (on a scale of 1-5) after QI interventions as well. The number of patients not checked out declined from 49 errors in October-December 2018 to 25 errors in January-March 2019, indicating that this part of the initiative was initially successful. However, subsequent months experienced higher error rates. Analysis of over 20,000 appointments from June 2018 to July 2019 showed that appointment length did not change after interventions.ConclusionsThere was no difference in appointment lengths between Hispanic/Latino patients and other patients, and an encouraging finding that suggests PediPlace providers are effective bilingual communicators. Furthermore, anecdotal evidence indicated that the art kits were positively received. The interventions appeared to improve the patient experience but did not impact appointment length. PediPlace plans to continue QI initiatives in the future.
| S-EPMC7190244 | biostudies-literature
Project description:IntroductionEarly-onset sepsis (EOS) and late-onset Sepsis (LOS) are common diagnoses entertained in sick newborns treated in neonatal intensive care units (NICUs), and antibiotics are the medications most prescribed in NICUs. Antibiotic stewardship programs have an important impact on limiting unnecessary antibiotic use.MethodsFollowing the Model for Improvement, between 2/1/16 and 1/31/17, at a level 3 NICU, a multidisciplinary team implemented PDSA cycles to promote antibiotic stewardship practices for newborns at risk of EOS and LOS. The main goal was to decrease the antibiotic usage rate (AUR) safely. Primary strategies included discontinuing antibiotics within 24 hours of life if the newborn was stable, and the blood culture was negative for EOS and implementing an "antibiotic time-out" during rounds.ResultsFor all newborns admitted to our NICU, the AUR decreased, for EOS from 137 to 32 days per 1000 patient days (77% reduction) and for LOS from 277 to 121 days per 1000 patient days (56% reduction). We demonstrated the sustainability of both EOS-AUR and LOS-AUR during the 2 years postcompletion of the intervention period. There were no adverse effects of reducing the AUR.ConclusionInterventions that reduce unnecessary antibiotic use in the NICU are safe and prevent excessive antibiotic exposure.
| S-EPMC10990351 | biostudies-literature
Project description:Medical patients whose care needs exceed what is feasible on a general ward, but who do not clearly require critical care, may be admitted to an intermediate care unit (IMCU). Some IMCU patients deteriorate and require medical intensive care unit (MICU) admission. In 2012, staff in the Johns Hopkins IMCU expressed concern that patient acuity and the threshold for MICU admission were too high. Further, shared triage decision-making between residents and supervising physicians did not consistently occur.To improve our triage process, we used a 4Es quality improvement framework (engage, educate, execute, evaluate) to (1) educate residents and fellows regarding principles of triage and (2) facilitate real-time communication between MICU residents conducting triage and supervising physicians.Among patients transferred from the IMCU to the MICU during baseline (n=83;July-December 2012) and intervention phases (n=94;July-December 2013), unadjusted mortality decreased from 34% to 21% (p=0.06). After adjusting for severity of illness, admitting diagnosis, and bed availability, the odds of death were lower during the intervention vs. baseline phase (OR 0.33; 95%CI 0.11-0.98).Using a structured quality improvement process targeting triage education and increased resident/supervisor communication, we demonstrated reduced mortality among patients transferred from the IMCU to the MICU.
| S-EPMC5733724 | biostudies-literature