A Simulated Tracheostomy Tube Change Educational Intervention to Promote Competency Among Novice Healthcare Professionals: A Repeated Measures Study.

Objective: To evaluate an educational intervention to promote confidence, knowledge, and skills in tracheostomy tube change among nursing students. Methods: The study, conducted at the at the Johns Hopkins Center for Immersive Learning and Digital Innovation, enrolled nursing students without prior experience in tracheostomy tube change. The intervention included a pre-recorded presentation, faculty demonstrations with a Tracheostomy Care Training Simulation Model, and participant practice demonstrating skills. Primary outcomes included confidence, knowledge, and competency with tracheostomy tube changes. Secondary outcomes included number of attempts required to achieve competency and time required per attempt. The study followed STROBE guidelines with repeated measure design. Results: Participants in the study (n=50) had a mean age of 30 years, were predominantly female (83%) with a bachelor's degree (76%), most often in the third semester of nursing school (45%). Participants showed a mean improvement of 3.58 points out of five (SD: 0.56, P<0.001) across 11 pre- and post-test items. Every confidence assessment improved, with the largest increase in assessing tube placement. Knowledge assessments improved across all eight test items in the first test-retest interval, showing an improvement of 1.14 points out of five (SD: 0.89, P<0.001). Competency assessment improved in the first test-retest interval of 1.01 points out of five (SD: 0.65, P<0.001). On serial assessments, time to complete tracheostomy tube change decreased from 2.39 to 0.60 minutes. Faculty deemed 95% of participants competent after only one skill testing iteration. Conclusion: An educational intervention, combining digital presentations with interactive faculty-led simulations and practical skill assessments, successfully elevated nursing students' confidence, knowledge, and competency in tracheostomy tube changes.

Utilization of a standardized tracheostomy capping and decannulation protocol to improve patient safety.

OBJECTIVES/HYPOTHESIS: To develop and assess the feasibility of a new standardized protocol to guide tracheostomy decannulation. STUDY DESIGN: Descriptive review of quality improvement project. METHODS: A quality improvement project was conducted in the inpatient setting of a tertiary urban academic hospital. Adult patients who had received a tracheostomy and for whom the indication for tracheostomy had resolved were included. A multidisciplinary task force reviewed input from clinicians caring for tracheostomy patients and developed a protocol for screening, capping, and decannulation. The primary outcome measured was successful decannulation. RESULTS: Fifty-seven patients were screened for a capping trial over a 12-month period; 54 were capped. Six patients were lost to follow-up. Fifty patients passed the capping trial, and all 50 were decannulated successfully. When decannulation was pursued in one patient who had twice failed the screening criteria and subsequent capping trials, the patient failed decannulation and ultimately required reintubation for the management of secretions. The screening tool had high sensitivity (90%) and positive predictive value (100%) for successful decannulation. Additionally, the number of reported patient safety concerns decreased from seven in the 6 months preceding implementation of the program to one report in the 6 months after implementation. CONCLUSION: The new tracheostomy capping and decannulation protocol assisted in predicting both successful and failed decannulation. Although several patients failed certain capping criteria initially, the protocol stipulated modifications of care that enabled successful decannulation. The screening tool had high sensitivity and promoted communication, standardization of practice, and patient safety.

Model for best practice: nurse practitioner facilitated percutaneous tracheostomy service.

CONTEXT: In 2007, a tracheostomy nurse practitioner role was created to facilitate the percutaneous tracheostomy service that was established in 2005 at an urban academic tertiary care facility. The purpose of the tracheostomy nurse practitioner's role was to provide comprehensive care to tracheostomy patients. OBJECTIVE: To determine whether the addition of a tracheostomy nurse practitioner to the percutaneous tracheostomy service improves (i) standard of care (ii) efficiency of care, and (iii) patient outcomes. DESIGN: Retrospective electronic patient record and chart review comparing data before and after the addition of a tracheostomy nurse practitioner to the percutaneous tracheostomy service. METHODS: A total of 110 patients who underwent percutaneous tracheostomy in 2006 and 2008 (n = 55) were randomly selected for the study. Data were collected regarding standard of care, efficiency (n = 55) of care, and patient outcomes. SETTING: Urban, academic, tertiary care medical center OUTCOME MEASURES: Standard of care: (1) use of tracheostomy screening tool, 2) obtaining consent, 3) completeness of consent with patient's name, date, time, and signatures of patient/family, provider and witness, 4) performance of timeout, 5) use of tracheostomy postoperative order set, 6) documentation of a procedure note in the chart, and 7) and documentation of operative note in electronic patient record), efficiency of care: timeliness of the service, and patient outcomes: intensive care unit and hospital length of stay, and documented complications. RESULTS: Between 2006 and 2008, there were statistically significant improvements in 4 of 7 measures of standard of care, use of a tracheostomy screening tool, completeness of consent (documentation of time when consent was completed and presence of signature of witness), performance of time outs, and use of postoperative order set. Between 2006 and 2008, there was also a statistically significant improvement in timeliness of the service. However, there were no significant differences in the three patient outcome measures before and after the addition of the service. CONCLUSIONS: The nurse practitioner facilitated tracheostomy service significantly improved standard of care and efficiency. Relevance to Nursing: Nurse Practitioner facilitated tracheostomy service is an innovative approach to managing tracheostomy patients. The role of the advanced practice nurse as described in this study can be adopted by other institutions to improve the standard of care and efficiency of care.