Supervision of essential patient safety actions in medical units in a health institution.

OBJECTIVE: To determine the importance of the supervision of the essential patient safety actions (AESP) in the different Medical Units of the different levels of care in Mexico City. METHOD: The concern for quality in health care, understood as the safety of patients, is a fundamental aspect that involves the authorities and operational personnel. Supervisions were carried out in the different medical units of Mexico City. RESULTS: Positive correlations were observed between the implementation of the AESP and the number of damages, incidents, events and errors existing in the medical units. CONCLUSIONS: The supervision of the AESP program should be aimed at the prevention and management of risks in health care, recognizing the occurrence of adverse events as a reality resulting from a gradual work of a whole process of continuous improvement.

OBJETIVO: Determinar la importancia de la supervisión de las acciones esenciales de seguridad del paciente (AESP) en las diferentes unidades médicas de los distintos niveles de atención en la Ciudad de México. MÉTODO: La preocupación por la calidad en la atención de salud, entendida como la seguridad de los pacientes, es un aspecto fundamental que involucra a las autoridades y al personal operativo. Se realizaron supervisiones en las diferentes unidades médicas de la Ciudad de México. RESULTADOS: Se observaron correlaciones positivas entre la supervisión de las AESP y el número de daños, incidentes, eventos y errores existentes en las unidades médicas. CONCLUSIONES: La supervisión del programa de AESP debe estar destinado a la prevención y gestión de los riesgos en la atención de salud, reconociendo la ocurrencia de eventos adversos como una realidad producto de un trabajo paulatino de todo un proceso de mejora continua.

[The role of the coordinating nurse in a transverse clinical nutrition unit]. / Rôle de l'infirmier de coordination dans une unité transversale de nutrition clinique.

Malnutrition is a common pathology, often underdiagnosed, and is associated with numerous chronic diseases. Transversal clinical nutrition units (TCNU) are being implemented to improve the screening and management of malnutrition. The coordinating nurse plays a key role within a TCNU: organizing and coordinating personalized care pathways for malnourished patients, especially those with complex pathologies requiring multidisciplinary care. This article outlines the responsibilities of the coordinating nurse based on the experience of the TCNU established at the Pitié-Salpêtrière Hospital (Assistance Publique-Hôpitaux de Paris).

Practical Requirements for the Development of an Advanced Cardiorenal Unit.

BACKGROUND: Heart failure is frequently associated with kidney disease, and patients with kidney disease are at increased risk of heart failure. The co-occurrence of both entities not only significantly increases morbidity and mortality but also complicates therapy. SUMMARY: Cardiorenal syndrome often requires a broad, comprehensive, and multidisciplinary approach. As a result, a need has arisen to create specialized cardiorenal units that allow for rigorous and personalized management of this condition. Moreover, in some cases, cardiorenal syndrome is more complex, owing to an acute and critical situation that requires the concept of the cardiorenal unit to be extended toward advanced diagnostic and therapeutic positions, thus confirming the need for an advanced cardiorenal unit. The creation of these units constitutes a real challenge, necessitating a specific multilevel action plan, covering governance and management, type of patient, personnel requirements, service portfolio, care process, information systems, and other resources. Specific lines of action must be proposed for each of the relevant points in order to facilitate development of these units, together with continuous evaluation of unit activity through specific indicators, and to detect areas for improvement. KEY MESSAGES: This study addresses the conditions and organizational characteristics that enable the creation, development, and continuous improvement of advanced cardiorenal units.

Abdominal wall surgery units accreditation. The Spanish model.

The Spanish Association of Surgeons (AEC) deems it essential to define and regulate the acquisition of high-specialization competencies within General Surgery and Gastrointestinal Surgery and proposes the Regulation for the accreditation of specialized surgical units. The AEC aims to define specialized surgical units as those functional elements of the health system that meet the defined requirements regarding their provision, solvency, and specialization in care, teaching, and research. In this paper we present the proposed accreditation model for Abdominal Wall Surgery Units, as well as the results of a survey conducted to assess the status of such units in our country. The model presented represents one of the pioneering initiatives worldwide concerning the accreditation of Abdominal Wall Surgery Units.

Nursing Workflow Change in a COVID-19 Inpatient Unit Following the Deployment of Inpatient Telehealth: Observational Study Using a Real-Time Locating System.

BACKGROUND: The COVID-19 pandemic prompted widespread implementation of telehealth, including in the inpatient setting, with the goals to reduce potential pathogen exposure events and personal protective equipment (PPE) utilization. Nursing workflow adaptations in these novel environments are of particular interest given the association between nursing time at the bedside and patient safety. Understanding the frequency and duration of nurse-patient encounters following the introduction of a novel telehealth platform in the context of COVID-19 may therefore provide insight into downstream impacts on patient safety, pathogen exposure, and PPE utilization. OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to evaluate changes in nursing workflow relative to prepandemic levels using a real-time locating system (RTLS) following the deployment of inpatient telehealth on a COVID-19 unit. METHODS: In March 2020, telehealth was installed in patient rooms in a COVID-19 unit and on movable carts in 3 comparison units. The existing RTLS captured nurse movement during 1 pre- and 5 postpandemic stages (January-December 2020). Change in direct nurse-patient encounters, time spent in patient rooms per encounter, and total time spent with patients per shift relative to baseline were calculated. Generalized linear models assessed difference-in-differences in outcomes between COVID-19 and comparison units. Telehealth adoption was captured and reported at the unit level. RESULTS: Change in frequency of encounters and time spent per encounter from baseline differed between the COVID-19 and comparison units at all stages of the pandemic (all P<.001). Frequency of encounters decreased (difference-in-differences range -6.6 to -14.1 encounters) and duration of encounters increased (difference-in-differences range 1.8 to 6.2 minutes) from baseline to a greater extent in the COVID-19 units relative to the comparison units. At most stages of the pandemic, the change in total time nurses spent in patient rooms per patient per shift from baseline did not differ between the COVID-19 and comparison units (all P>.17). The primary COVID-19 unit quickly adopted telehealth technology during the observation period, initiating 15,088 encounters that averaged 6.6 minutes (SD 13.6) each. CONCLUSIONS: RTLS movement data suggest that total nursing time at the bedside remained unchanged following the deployment of inpatient telehealth in a COVID-19 unit. Compared to other units with shared mobile telehealth units, the frequency of nurse-patient in-person encounters decreased and the duration lengthened on a COVID-19 unit with in-room telehealth availability, indicating "batched" redistribution of work to maintain total time at bedside relative to prepandemic periods. The simultaneous adoption of telehealth suggests that virtual care was a complement to, rather than a replacement for, in-person care. However, study limitations preclude our ability to draw a causal link between nursing workflow change and telehealth adoption. Thus, further evaluation is needed to determine potential downstream implications on disease transmission, PPE utilization, and patient safety.

Developing a Unit Profile Dashboard to Inform Nursing Care Delivery Based on Unique Needs of Patients.

Nurse leaders need real-time, accurate data to design care delivery models and make decisions that reflect the patient populations they serve. To support nurse leader practice and optimize patient care, we developed a unit profile dashboard to describe the unique characteristics of patient populations cared for on each clinical unit at our hospital. In this article, we describe dashboard development, challenges, use cases, and plans for data analytics to further advance nursing practice.

Severe maternal morbidity: admission shift from intensive care unit to obstetric high-dependency unit.

BACKGROUND: To study temporal trends of intensive care unit (ICU) admission in obstetric population after the introduction of obstetric high-dependency unit (HDU). METHODS: This is a retrospective study of consecutive obstetric patients admitted to the ICU/HDU in a provincial referral center in China from January 2014 to December 2019. The collected information included maternal demographic characteristics, indications for ICU and HDU admission, the length of ICU stay, the total length of in-hospital stay and APACHE II score. Chi-square and ANOVA tests were used to determine statistical significance. The temporal changes were assessed with chi-square test for linear trend. RESULTS: A total of 40,412 women delivered and 447 (1.11%) women were admitted to ICU in this 6-year period. The rate of ICU admission peaked at 1.59% in 2016 and then dropped to 0.67% in 2019 with the introduction of obstetric HDU. The average APACHE II score increased significantly from 6.8 to 12.3 (P < 0.001) and the average length of ICU stay increased from 1.7 to 7.1 days (P < 0.001). The main indications for maternal ICU admissions were hypertensive disorders in pregnancy (39.8%), cardiac diseases (24.8%), and other medical disorders (21.5%); while the most common reasons for referring to HDU were hypertensive disorders of pregnancy (46.5%) and obstetric hemorrhage (43.0%). The establishment of HDU led to 20% reduction in ICU admission, which was mainly related to obstetric indications. CONCLUSIONS: The introduction of HDU helps to reduce ICU utilization in obstetric population.

[Adaptation of headache units in Andalusia to the COVID-19 pandemic. Analysis of the Andalusian Neurology Society's Headache Study Group]. / Adaptación de las unidades de cefalea de Andalucía a la pandemia por COVID-19. Análisis del Grupo de Estudio de Cefaleas de la Sociedad Andaluza de Neurología.

INTRODUCTION: The SARS-CoV-2 pandemic has given rise to a major change in healthcare and brought teleconsultation to the forefront. In neurology, headaches are the most frequent reason for visits. AIM: To assess the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the structure of headache units in Andalusia and the adaptations made to healthcare that are potentially useful innovations that can continue to be developed when the pandemic is over. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Cross-sectional observational study using an online survey of neurologists responsible for headache units and specialised consultations in Andalusia. RESULTS: During the state of alarm, all respondents used teleconsultation. The vast majority (92.8%) maintained some face-to-face activity, mostly for invasive techniques and new patients, using individual protection measures and as a way to avoid crowds. Half of them (50%) maintained botulinum toxin administrations at the scheduled times and 78.6% continued to prescribe monoclonal antibodies against calcitonin gene-related peptide. Altogether 78.5% are generally satisfied with the use of teleconsultation and 57.1% think it could be quite useful in the future. The main advantages reported were avoiding the need for the patient to travel and time savings; the disadvantages were the absence of physical examinations and difficulties in communicating. The most frequently expressed need for improvement was the use of video-calls. CONCLUSIONS: Some of the changes adopted during this time could continue to be useful in the future and, in the case of headaches, teleconsultation could be used as an option for following up patients who have already been diagnosed and do not require any invasive techniques.

TITLE: Adaptación de las unidades de cefalea de Andalucía a la pandemia por COVID-19. Análisis del Grupo de Estudio de Cefaleas de la Sociedad Andaluza de Neurología.Introducción. La pandemia por SARS-CoV-2 ha supuesto un gran cambio en la atención sanitaria y ha dado protagonismo a la teleconsulta. En neurología, las cefaleas constituyen el motivo más frecuente de consulta. Objetivo. Evaluar el impacto de la pandemia por COVID-19 en la estructura de las unidades de cefaleas de Andalucía y las adaptaciones asistenciales potencialmente útiles tras ella. Materiales y métodos. Estudio observacional transversal mediante encuesta en línea a los neurólogos responsables de las unidades y consultas monográficas de cefaleas de Andalucía. Resultados. Durante el estado de alarma, todos los encuestados usaron teleconsulta. El 92,8% mantuvo alguna actividad presencial, fundamentalmente para técnicas invasivas y pacientes nuevos, utilizando medidas de protección individual y para evitar aglomeraciones. El 50% mantuvo las administraciones de toxina botulínica en los tiempos adecuados y el 78,6% siguió prescribiendo anticuerpos monoclonales frente al péptido relacionado con el gen de la calcitonina. El 78,5% se encuentra globalmente satisfecho con el uso de la teleconsulta y el 57,1% considera que podría ser bastante útil de cara al futuro. Las principales ventajas expresadas fueron evitar el desplazamiento de los pacientes y el ahorro de tiempo; los inconvenientes, la ausencia de exploración física y la dificultad de comunicación. La necesidad de mejora más expresada fue el uso de videollamada. Conclusiones. Algunos de los cambios adoptados en este tiempo podrían seguir siendo útiles en el futuro y, en el caso de las cefaleas, la teleconsulta se podría emplear como opción para el seguimiento de pacientes ya diagnosticados y que no requieran técnicas invasivas.

Building a competitive infrastructure to support clinical research in healthcare institution.

BACKGROUND: Clinical research is becoming increasingly popular in Europe at a growth rate much higher than expected, especially in Benelux. Although traditionally thought to be the purview of academic health centres, clinical research to evaluate new drugs, devices and medical practices is being done more and more in healthcare organizations with little or no academic affiliation. METHODS: By managing a new infrastructure and centralizing resources and demands, clinical research unit (CRU) has become an effective mechanism for hospital research. The 'infrastructure' or CRU refers to the necessary resources and how the CRU is organized and communicates operationally to conduct clinical research within the institution. The creation of a new CRU within the Robert Schuman Hospital in Luxembourg is described in this article. RESULTS: This article discusses the concrete steps and basic elements such as patient-centric and hospital approaches needed to create and structure a CRU to provide academic or industry-sponsored research support in clinical research. CONCLUSIONS: Some infrastructure challenges (insufficient engagement, regulatory and administrative barriers) and possible courses of action (standardized procedures, training and centralization) will be discussed.

Implementation of a ward staff self-rostering system: improving morale and retention.

Staff morale is an important factor in maintaining and improving nurse recruitment and retention. Evidence suggests more flexible working patterns can improve nurses' work-life balance and subsequently their workplace satisfaction. This article describes a ward-based quality improvement project that introduced a self-rostering system that enabled nurses to select their own shifts for a given four-week roster period. The aim was to increase staff satisfaction and subsequently improve retention and recruitment. The article describes the project and discusses the positive outcomes.

Effect of COVID-19 pandemic on workflows and infection prevention strategies of endoscopy units in Hungary: a cross-sectional survey.

BACKGROUND: Health care professionals in endoscopic labs have an elevated risk for COVID-19 infection, therefore, we aimed to determine the effect of current pandemic on the workflow and infection prevention and control strategies of endoscopy units in real-life setting. METHODS: All members of Hungarian Society of Gastroenterology were invited between 7 and 17 April 2020 to participate in this cross-section survey study and to complete an online, anonymous questionnaire. RESULTS: Total of 120 endoscopists from 83 institutes were enrolled of which 35.83% worked in regions with high cumulative incidence of COVID-19. Only 33.33% of them had undergone training about infection prevention in their workplace. 95.83% of endoscopists regularly used risk stratification of patients for infection prior endoscopy. While indications of examinations in low risk patients varied widely, in high-risk or positive patients endoscopy was limited to gastrointestinal bleeding (95.00%), removal of foreign body from esophagus (87.50%), management of obstructive jaundice (72.50%) and biliary pancreatitis (67.50%). Appropriate amount of personal protective equipment was available in 60.85% of endoscopy units. In high-risk or positive patients, surgical mask, filtering facepiece mask, protective eyewear and two pairs of gloves were applied in 30.83%, 76.67%, 90.00% and 87.50% of cases, respectively. Personal protective equipment fully complied with European guideline only in 67.50% of cases. CONCLUSIONS: Survey found large variability in indications of endoscopy and relative weak compliance to national and international practical recommendations in terms of protective equipment. This could be improved by adequate training about infection prevention.

Managing volunteers who support patients with dementia or cognitive impairment on acute hospital wards: the NURTURe model.

Volunteers are widely used to support patients with dementia or cognitive impairment on acute hospital wards. However, it appears that traditional volunteer management models do not fully address the challenges posed by managing volunteers in that setting. In a study of the use of volunteers in the care of people with dementia and cognitive impairment on acute hospital wards, interviews with a range of stakeholders revealed challenges regarding the environment, role and image of volunteers. Based on the study findings, an alternative model for managing volunteers on acute hospital wards was developed. This article describes the study and discusses the development of this alternative approach, the NURTURe model.

Resumption of endoscopy in the Galician colorectal cancer screening programme after the COVID-19 lock down: patient safety results.

The COVID-19 pandemic meant that the population-based colorectal cancer (CRC) screening programs had to be suspended. Modifications were made to the organization in order to reduce SARS-CoV-2 transmission. We report the experience of the Galician CRC screening program and patient safety results. Endoscopy was suspended between 13/03/2020 and 11/05/2020. After resumption, a total of 3,310 colonoscopies were performed (1,702 positive fecal occult blood tests and 1,608 endoscopy monitoring) and no SARS-CoV-2 infections were detected in the subsequent two weeks. Thus, resumption of activity associated with population screening was safe.

Service reconfiguration in the department of hand surgery during the UK COVID-19 lockdown: Birmingham experience.

In early 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic swept through the UK and had a major impact on healthcare services. The Birmingham hand centre, one of the largest hand trauma units in the country, underwent a dramatic service reconfiguration to enable robust and safe provision of care that would withstand the peak of the pandemic. Streamlining our service significantly reduced patient footfall and hospital admission while preventing intra-hospital viral transmission. Many of the changes implemented have been kept as permanent adjustments to our practice as this new model of care yields higher patient satisfaction and efficacy to withstand the pressures of further peaks in the pandemic.

Lessons Learned from the Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic in a Vascular Surgery Department and Preparation for Future Outbreaks.

OBJECTIVES: This study aims to report the changes and adaptations of a vascular tertiary center during a global pandemic and the impact on its activity and patients. METHODS: We conducted a retrospective cohort study within the Vascular Surgery ward in Centro Hospitalar Universitário Lisboa Norte, Portugal. All data from surgical, inpatient and outpatient activity were collected from February to June 2020 and compared to the same 5-month period in 2018 and 2019. We ran a descriptive analysis of all data and performed statistical tests for the variation of procedures and admissions between February and June 2018 and the same time period in 2020. RESULTS: During the outbreak, our staff had to be readapted. Six nurses were transferred to COVID-19 units (out of a total of 33 nurses) while 1 of the 7 residents was transferred to an intensive care unit and 1 senior surgeon was put on prophylactic leave. In the outpatient clinic, there was an increase in the number of telemedicine consultations with a greater focus on first-time referrals and urgent cases. There was a significant increase in the total number of elective admissions whereas there were significantly less admissions from an emergency setting (+57% and -54%, respectively, P < 0.001). The vascular surgery team performed a total number of 584 procedures between February and June 2020 (-17.8% compared to 2018 and 2019), with a significant increase in the number of endovascular procedures (P < 0.001) and in the use of local and regional anesthesia (P < 0.001), especially in the Angio Suite (+600%, P < 0.001). Comparing with 2018 and 2019, the surgical team performed less outpatient procedures in early 2020. We reported a significant increase in the total number of procedures for patients with a chronic limb-threatening ischemia (CLTI) diagnosis (+21%, P < 0.001). We did not report significant changes in the proportion of other vascular conditions. Regarding mortality, we observed a 16% decrease in the intraoperative mortality (P 0.67). CONCLUSIONS: In this study, we assessed the impact of the COVID-19 outbreak in daily activity during the contingency period. During the outbreak, there was an overall decline in outpatient clinics and inpatient admissions. Nevertheless, and despite the restrictions imposed by the pandemic and health authorities, we managed to maintain most procedures for most vascular diseases, particularly for CLTI urgent cases, without a significant increase in the mortality rate. Stringent protective measures for patient and staff or higher use of endovascular techniques and local anesthesia are some of the successful changes implemented in the department. These learned lessons are to be pursued as the pandemic evolves with future outbreaks of COVID-19, such as the current second outbreak currently spreading through Europe.