Implementation of a Nurse-Initiated Protocol to Improve Enteral Medication Administration Documentation in Stroke Patients.

ABSTRACT: BACKGROUND: Medication documentation falls under the "7 rights" of medication administration, but strategies to prevent medication administration documentation errors (MADEs) related to route of administration are underreported in the literature. This study aimed to report the outcomes of a nurse-initiated protocol designed to prevent MADEs and align both actual and documented medication administration routes in hospitalized stroke patients with feeding tubes (FTs). METHODS: This was a retrospective descriptive study conducted at a Comprehensive Stroke Center and large academic medical center in the Western United States. Adults admitted with the diagnosis of stroke between February 2022 and August 2023, who had an FT on arrival, or placed during admission, and received at least 1 enteral medication ordered for by mouth (PO) administration, were included. The protocol allowed nurses to place a communication order to a pharmacist via the electronic health record, requesting all enteral medications ordered for PO administration be changed to FT administration. RESULTS: There were 481 patients included with a median age of 68 years (interquartile range, 58-76 years). The nurse-initiated protocol was used in 170 patients (35.3%), with 99 patients (58.2%) having all enteral medication orders converted completely by a pharmacist. Of the 170 patients in which the protocol was initiated, 145 (85.3%) had all scheduled enteral medication orders converted. For the 71 patients who did not have all enteral medication orders converted completely, the median number of potential MADEs was 2 (1-4.5). CONCLUSION: A nurse-initiated protocol designed to prevent MADEs and improve the accuracy of actual and documented route of medication administration for patients hospitalized for stroke with FTs had modest use. The nurse-initiated protocol in this study is the first of its kind and may help guide further research on preventing and reducing MADEs.

Predictors of Time to Aneurysm Repair and Mortality in Aneurysmal Subarachnoid Hemorrhage.

ABSTRACT: BACKGROUND : Prompt aneurysm repair is essential to prevent rebleeding after aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage. To date, most studies on this topic have focused on 1 set of predictors (eg, hospital or patient characteristics) and on 1 outcome (either time to aneurysm repair or mortality). The purpose of this study was to test a model that includes hospital and patient characteristics as predictors of time to aneurysm repair and mortality, controlling for disease severity and comorbidity, and considering time to aneurysm repair as a potential influence in these relationships. METHODS : A sample of aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage patients with a principal procedure of clipping or coiling was selected (n = 387) from a statewide administrative database for cross-sectional retrospective analysis. The primary study outcome was in-hospital mortality. Independent variables were level of stroke center, age, race, sex, and type of aneurysm repair. Hierarchical logistic regression was used to estimate the probability of in-hospital death. RESULTS : Patients who underwent a coiling procedure were more likely to be treated within the first 24 hours of admission compared with those undergoing clipping (odds ratio, 0.54; 95% CI, 0.35-0.84; P = .01). Patients treated at a certified comprehensive stroke center (CSC) had a 72% reduction in odds of death compared with those treated at primary stroke centers (odds ratio, 0.28; 95% CI, 0.10-0.77; P = .01), after controlling for disease severity and comorbid conditions. Time to aneurysm repair was not significantly associated with mortality and did not influence the relationship between hospital and patient characteristics and mortality. CONCLUSION : Our results indicate that treatment at a CSC was associated with a lower risk of in-hospital mortality. Time to aneurysm repair did not influence mortality and did not explain the mortality benefit observed in CSCs. Research is needed to explore interdisciplinary hospital factors including nursing and nurse-sensitive interventions that may explain the relationship between CSCs and mortality outcomes.

Factors Associated With Emergency Department Length of Stay and In-hospital Mortality in Intracerebral Hemorrhage Patients.

ABSTRACT: BACKGROUND: Spontaneous intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH) is a medical emergency that requires rapid identification and focused assessment early to ensure the best possible outcomes. The purpose of this study is to evaluate the associations between system and patient factors and emergency department (ED) length of stay and in-hospital mortality in patients given a diagnosis of ICH. METHODS: A sample of 3108 ICH patients was selected from a statewide administrative database for cross-sectional retrospective analysis. System characteristic (hospital stroke certification), patient characteristics (age, sex, and race), and covariate conditions (stroke severity and comorbidities) were analyzed using descriptive statistics and hierarchical logistic regression models to address the study questions. RESULTS: The mean ED length of stay is 2.9 ± 3 hours (range, 0-42 hours) before admission to an inpatient unit. Inpatient mortality is 14.9%. Stroke center certification (P < .000) and stroke severity (P ≤ .000) are significant predictors of ED length of stay, whereas age (P < .000), stroke severity (P < .000), comorbidities (P = .047), and ED length of stay (P = .04) are significant predictors of in-hospital mortality. Most notably, an ED length of stay of 3 hours or longer has a 37% increase in the odds of in-hospital mortality. CONCLUSION: Our findings support age, stroke severity, and ED length of stay as predictors of in-hospital mortality for ICH patients. The importance of timely admission to an inpatient unit is emphasized. Optimal systems of care and expedited inpatient admission are vital to reduce morbidity and mortality for ICH stroke patients.

Factors Associated With Recurrent Ischemic Stroke in the Medical Group of the SAMMPRIS Trial.

IMPORTANCE: The Stenting and Aggressive Medical Management for Preventing Recurrent Stroke in Intracranial Stenosis (SAMMPRIS) Trial showed that aggressive medical therapy was more effective than stenting for preventing stroke in patients with symptomatic intracranial stenosis. However, 15% of patients in the medical group still experienced a primary end point during a median follow-up of 32.7 months. OBJECTIVE: To determine baseline features that were associated with a high rate of a primary end point in the medical arm of the SAMMPRIS Trial. DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS: A post hoc analysis of patients in the medical arm only of the SAMMPRIS trial. Enrollment occurred between October 2008 and April 2013 and included 227 patients randomized to medical management alone. Baseline demographic features, vascular risk factors, qualifying event, brain imaging, and angiographic features were analyzed. Bivariate and multivariable proportional hazard regression modeling was performed to relate baseline features to the time until a primary end point. The post hoc analysis was conducted from November 2014 to June 2015. INTERVENTIONS: The SAMMPRIS Trial compared stenting with aggressive medical management in patients with a stroke or transient ischemic attack attributed to 70% to 99% stenosis of a major intracranial artery. MAIN OUTCOMES AND MEASURES: The primary outcome was any of the following: stroke or death within 30 days of enrollment, ischemic stroke in the territory of the symptomatic intracranial artery beyond 30 days after enrollment, or any stroke or death within 30 days after stenting a patient in the medical group during follow-up. RESULTS: A total of 227 patients were included in the study, 82 of whom were female, and the mean (SD) age was 59.5 (11.8) years. Being female (hazard ratio [HR], 1.9; 95% CI, 0.96-3.7), having diabetes mellitus (HR, 1.8; 95% CI, 0.9-3.5), not taking a statin at enrollment (HR, 2.6; 95% CI, 1.2-5.7), stroke as the qualifying event (HR, 2.5; 95% CI, 1.03-6.0), Rankin grade of 1 or greater (HR, 2.3; 95% CI, 0.9-5.5), old infarct in the territory of the stenotic artery (HR, 2.6; 95% CI, 1.3-5.1), and greater than 80% stenosis (HR, 1.9; 95% CI, 0.9-3.7) were associated (P < .10) with higher risk on bivariate analysis. Factors that were significantly associated with a primary end point on multivariable analyses were old infarct in the territory (HR, 2.6; 95% CI, 1.3-5.3; P = .006), stroke as the qualifying event (HR, 3.0; 95% CI, 1.1-7.7; P = .03), and no statin use at enrollment (HR, 2.4; 95% CI, 1.1-5.2; P = .03). CONCLUSIONS AND RELEVANCE: Old infarct in the territory of the stenosis, new stroke presentation, and absence of statin use at enrollment were independently associated with high rates of the primary end point in the medical group in the SAMMPRIS Trial. These features may be useful for selecting high-risk patients for future clinical trials evaluating alternative therapies for intracranial stenosis. TRIAL REGISTRATION: clinicaltrials.gov Identifier: NCT00576693.

CYP2C19 and CES1 polymorphisms and efficacy of clopidogrel and aspirin dual antiplatelet therapy in patients with symptomatic intracranial atherosclerotic disease.

OBJECT Symptomatic intracranial atherosclerotic disease (ICAD) has a high risk of recurrent stroke. Genetic polymorphisms in CYP2C19 and CES1 are associated with adverse outcomes in cardiovascular patients, but have not been studied in ICAD. The authors studied CYP2C19 and CES1 single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in symptomatic ICAD patients. METHODS Genotype testing for CYP2C19*2, (*)3, (*)8, (*)17 and CES1 G143E was performed on 188 adult symptomatic ICAD patients from 3 medical centers who were medically managed with clopidogrel and aspirin. Testing was performed prospectively at 1 center, and retrospectively from a DNA sample biorepository at 2 centers. Multiple logistic regression and Cox regression analysis were performed to assess the association of these SNPs with the primary endpoint, which was a composite of transient ischemic attack (TIA), stroke, myocardial infarction, or death within 12 months. RESULTS The primary endpoint occurred in 14.9% of the 188 cases. In multiple logistic regression analysis, the presence of the CYP2C19 loss of function (LOF) alleles *2, *3, and *8 in the medically managed patients was associated with lower odds of primary endpoint compared with wild-type homozygotes (odds ratio [OR] 0.13, 95% CI 0.03-0.62, p = 0.0101). Cox regression analysis demonstrated the CYP2C19 LOF carriers had a lower risk for the primary endpoint, with hazard ratio (HR) of 0.27 (95% CI 0.08-0.95), p = 0.041. A sensitivity analysis of a secondary composite endpoint of TIA, stroke, or death demonstrated a significant trend in multiple logistic regression analysis of CYP2C19 variants, with lower odds of secondary endpoint in patients carrying at least 1 LOF allele (*2, *3, *8) than in wild-type homozygotes (OR 0.27, 95% CI 0.06-1.16, p = 0.078). Cox regression analysis demonstrated that the carriers of CYP2C19 LOF alleles had a lower risk forthe secondary composite endpoint (HR 0.22, 95% CI 0.05-1.04, p = 0.056). CONCLUSIONS This is the first study examining genetic variants and their effects in symptomatic ICAD. Variant alleles of CYP2C19 (*2, *3, *8) were associated with lower odds of the primary and secondary composite endpoints. However, the direction of the association was opposite of what is expected based on this SNP. This may reflect an incomplete understanding of this genetic variation and its effect in symptomatic ICAD and warrants further investigations.