Safety practices and opportunities for improvement in brachytherapy: A patient safety practices survey of the American Brachytherapy Society membership.

PURPOSE: Safe delivery of brachytherapy and establishing a safety culture are critical in high-quality brachytherapy. The American Brachytherapy Society (ABS) Quality and Safety Committee surveyed members regarding brachytherapy services offered, safety practices during treatment, quality assurance procedures, and needs to develop safety and training materials. METHODS AND MATERIALS: A 22-item survey was sent to ABS membership in early 2019 to physicians, physicists, therapists, nurses, and administrators. Participation was voluntary. Responses were summarized with descriptive statistics and relative frequency distributions. RESULTS: There were 103 unique responses. Approximately one in three was attending physicians and one in three attending physicists. Most were in practice >10 years. A total of 94% and 50% performed gynecologic and prostate brachytherapy, respectively. Ninety-one percent performed two-identification patient verification before treatment. Eighty-six percent performed a time-out. Ninety-five percent had an incident reporting or learning system, but only 71% regularly reviewed incidents. Half reviewed safety practices within the last year. Twenty percent reported they were somewhat or not satisfied with department safety culture, but 92% of respondents were interested in improving safety culture. Most reported time, communication, and staffing as barriers to improving safety. Most respondents desired safety-oriented webinars, self-assessment modules, learning modules, or checklists endorsed by the ABS to improve safety practice. CONCLUSIONS: Most but not all practices use standards and quality assurance procedures in line with society recommendations. There is a need to heighten safety culture at many departments and to shift resources (e.g., time or staffing) to improve safety practice. There is a desire for society guidance to improve brachytherapy safety practices. This is the first survey to assess safety practice patterns among a national sample of radiation oncologists with expertise in brachytherapy.

Grand Duchy of Luxembourg: a case study of a national master patient index in production since five years.

BACKGROUND: Unequivocal identification of patients is a precondition for a safe medical journey through different information systems (ISs) and software applications that are communicating and exchanging interoperable data. A master patient index (MPI) can facilitate this task. Being a repository of patient identity traits, a MPI allows an accurate surveillance of the patients' "medical identities". Up to 2014, the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg did not possess a MPI. Here, we describe our experience in the establishment of a national MPI for the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg. METHODS: The different steps that were used to establish the MPI system are described. Firstly, through the identification of the suitable application and, secondly, through the implementation of the MPI to the eHealth national platform and its connection to the national health care system. In parallel to the first two phases, the identity management policies were defined and implemented. RESULTS: Since 2014, when the MPI was integrated to the eHealth platform, we observed a continuous increase of identity profiles. At the latest update (31 December 2018), 2.418.336 identity profiles have been counted, including almost the totality of Luxembourgish residents (95.2%) as well as all the cross-border workers that are affiliated to the Luxembourgish social security system. An analysis of the identification domains connected to the platform highlighted a yearly increase in the usage rate of the identities by external applications (currently representing 70%). The evaluation of the quality of information contained in each identity profile showed low rejection rates (0.2%), indicating a high quality and a good level of completeness in regards to the required identity traits. CONCLUSIONS: This paper presents the current state of patient identity management in Luxembourg and discusses how this synergistically supports the functioning of the national electronic health record (EHR) known as DSP (from the French Dossier de Soins Partagé) and the Luxemburgish health care system. The here described national MPI has refined the identification of patients, leading to an improvement of their safety during their medical journey. Nevertheless, the application regularly undergoes updates to better meet the current requirements of the Luxembourgish health system.

Intervention efficacy for eliminating patient misidentification using step-by-step problem-solving procedures to improve patient safety.

This study aimed to evaluate the efficacy of interventions to reduce patient misidentification incidents classified as level 2 and over (adverse events occurred for patients) with the step-by-step problem-solving method. All incidents related to patient misidentification were selected, and relevant information was collected from the original electronic incident reports. We then conducted an eight-step problem-solving process with the aim of reducing patient misclassification and improving patient safety. Step 1: the number of misidentification-related incident reports and the percentage of these reports in the total incident reports increased each year. Step 2: the most frequent misidentification type was sample collection tubes, followed by drug administration and hospital meals. Step 3: we set a target of an 20% decrease in patient misidentification cases classified as level 2 or over compared with the previous year, and established this as a hospital priority. Step 4: we found that discrepancies in patient identification procedures were the most important causes of misidentification. Step 5: we standardized the patient identification process to achieve an 10% reduction in misidentification. Step 6: we disseminated instructional videos to all staff members. Step 7: we confirmed there was an 18% reduction in level 2 and over patient misidentification compared with the previous year. Step 8: we intend to make additional effort to decrease misidentification of patients by a further 10%. Level 2 and over patient misidentification can be reduced by a patient identification policy using a step-by-step problem-solving procedure. This study aimed to evaluate the efficacy of interventions to reduce patient misidentification incidents with step-by-step problem-solving method. Continued seamless efforts to eliminate patient misidentification are mandatory for this activity.

Needs for aids and equipment for the management of epilepsy in an Australian cohort.

AIM: This paper investigated the bases of needs for a range of epilepsy aids and equipment and expressed concerns about the use of such devices. METHOD: There was a 29.6% response rate (n = 393 of 1328) to Wave 4 of the Australian Epilepsy Longitudinal Study (AELS). The focus of Wave 4 was on the expressed needs and affordability of aids and equipment for people with epilepsy (PWE) and quality of life (QoL). Quantitative analysis was used to examine the association between self-reported need for aids and equipment, sociodemographic information, and QoL. Open-ended responses were subject to qualitative analysis. RESULTS: Approximately one-fifth of the sample felt that they needed specific aids, including emergency ID bracelets, seizure alarms, and seizure monitors. Those respondents who felt that they needed aids had more frequent seizures, had been recently injured by a seizure, and were less prosperous. The QoL of those in need of equipment was lower than that of those who felt that they did not need it. Qualitative analysis revealed a need for more information about the aids available, issues associated with affordability, and some concern about the utility of these aids for those who lived alone. DISCUSSION: Much research to date has focussed on the development and validation of devices for PWE and standards for testing. Fewer studies deal with the needs and experiences of PWE with regard to the use of such equipment. The development of these devices needs to ensure patient comfort and acceptability. In addition, there is a need to canvas the views of family, caregivers, and primary care providers on the usability of epilepsy aids and equipment. CONCLUSION: Further person-centered research is needed in assessing the need for and usability of aids and equipment for the management of epilepsy.

Assessment of RAdiopaque Patient IDentification Stickers (RAPIDS) for patient-scan correlation in a mass casualty incident.

PURPOSE: To qualitatively assess the legibility of radiopaque patient identification stickers and their effect on image quality. These stickers are intended for use as a part of a patient registration and identification pack utilized in a mass casualty incident (MCI), to prevent errors in correlating patients with their diagnostic imaging and reports. METHODS: Four different prototype designs of stickers with radiopaque identification numbers which are legible on radiographs and CT were created. These were affixed to head and thorax phantoms and scanned using standard imaging protocols. Images were reviewed qualitatively for legibility and the presence of image degradation due to the radiopaque sticker materials using Likert scales by four radiologists and four emergency physicians. RESULTS: All four prototypes were confidently legible on forehead, shoulder and sternum on CT on topogram and reconstructed images. Sticker positioning over the temple resulted in unreliable legibility on topogram. All prototypes were confidently legible on shoulder and sternum on CT and radiographs. Significant image degradation was reported on radiographs with sticker position over the sternum. The preferred anatomic position was the forehead. CONCLUSION: In a mass casualty incident, radiopaque patient identification stickers affixed to injured patients may help to ensure confidence in the correlation between patients and their imaging. Tested prototypes were found to be easily legible without substantial degradation of image quality. Preferred anatomical position and construction material was established. Consideration should be given to addition of such radiographic identity aides to MCI patient registration packs.

Assessing the performance of the Asian/Pacific islander identification algorithm to infer Hmong ethnicity from electronic health records in California.

OBJECTIVE: This study assesses the performance of the North American Association of Central Cancer Registries Asian/Pacific Islander Identification Algorithm (NAPIIA) to infer Hmong ethnicity. DESIGN AND SETTING: Analyses of electronic health records (EHRs) from 1 January 2011 to 1 October 2015. The NAPIIA was applied to the EHR data, and self-reported Hmong ethnicity from a questionnaire was used as the gold standard. Sensitivity, specificity, positive (PPV) and negative predictive values (NPVs) were calculated comparing the source data ethnicity inferred by the algorithm with the self-reported ethnicity from the questionnaire. PARTICIPANTS: EHRs indicating Hmong, Chinese, Vietnamese and Korean ethnicity who met the original study inclusion criteria were analysed. RESULTS: The NAPIIA had a sensitivity of 78%, a specificity of 99.9%, a PPV of 96% and an NPV of 99%. The prevalence of Hmong population in the sample was 3.9%. CONCLUSION: The high sensitivity of the NAPIIA indicates its effectiveness in detecting Hmong ethnicity. The applicability of the NAPIIA to a multitude of Asian subgroups can advance Asian health disparity research by enabling researchers to disaggregate Asian data and unmask health challenges of different Asian subgroups.

[Evaluation of effectiveness of corrective measures arising from incident notifications in a paediatric emergency department]. / Evaluación de la efectividad de acciones correctivas derivadas de la notificación de incidentes en urgencias pediátricas.

OBJECTIVE: To analyse the effectiveness of corrective measures arising from the analysis of safety incident notifications in the Paediatric Emergency Unit. METHODS: A quasi-experimental, prospective, and single-centre study was carried out between 2015 and 2018. In the first phase, incidents notified throughout one year were analysed. Corrective measures were then implemented for 5 specific kinds of incidents. These incidents were finally compared to those notified within 12 months after the implementation of those measures. Results were expressed as relative risk and relative risk reduction. RESULTS: A total of 1587 safety incidents were notified (0.9% of patients treated) between January 2015 and December 2017. After implementation of corrective measures, there was a decrease in all kinds of incidents notifications analysed. The incidents related to patient identification were reduced by 60.9% (RR 0.39, 95% CI; 0.25-0.60), and those regarding communication between professionals were reduced by 74.5% (RR 0.25, 95% CI; 0.12-0.55). Incidents related to sedation and analgesic procedures totally disappeared. No significant reduction was found in incidents concerning the triage system, or in those related to rapid intravenous rehydration procedures. CONCLUSIONS: The implementation of improvement actions arising from the analysis of voluntary notification of incidents is an effective strategy to improve patient effective strategy to improve.

Unique health identifiers for universal health coverage.

Identifying everyone residing in a country, especially the poor, is an indispensable part of pursuing universal health coverage (UHC). Having information on an individuals' financial protection is also imperative for measuring the progress of UHC. This paper examines different ways of instituting a system of unique health identifiers that can lead toward achieving UHC, particularly in relation to utilizing universal civil registration and national unique identification number systems. Civil registration is a fundamental function of the government that establishes a legal identity for individuals and enables them to access essential public services. National unique identification numbers assigned at birth registration can further link their vital event information with data collected in different sectors, including in finance and health. Some countries use the national unique identification number as the unique health identifier, such as is done in South Korea and Thailand. In other countries, a unique health identifier is created in addition to the national unique identification number, but the two numbers are linked; Slovenia offers an example of this arrangement. The advantages and disadvantages of the system types are discussed in the paper. In either approach, linking the health system with the civil registration and national identity management systems contributed to advancing effective and efficient UHC programs in those countries.

[Closed-loop medication management: Results of a user survey]. / Elektronisch unterstützter Richt- und Abgabeprozess von Medikamenten im Universitätsspital: Ergebnisse einer Benutzerbefragung.

BACKGROUND: New technologies, such as bar-code scanning systems, have played a significant role in enhancing medication processes over recent years. Despite the documented benefits, integration, acceptance, and user opinion continue to play an important role in the successful implementation of such systems. To date no studies have been carried out in Switzerland to assess the attitude or acceptance of nurses towards electronically supported medication systems after implementation. This study was conducted in order to close this gap. METHODS: Following a four-month test phase of a closed-loop medication system on two mixed medical-surgical units in a tertiary teaching hospital, a cross-sectional online survey was conducted among the participating registered nurses (response rate: 62.5%). RESULTS: The new system was evaluated positively by the majority (70%) of users. Accordingly, the barcode-assisted medication process was proven to be especially beneficial to users during the 24-hour medication preparation process and during the preparation of infusions. However, user compliance decreased significantly during the administration of bedside medication and the preparation of additional single doses. This was mainly due to a lack of time and inadequate system performance. CONCLUSION: In the study, 75% of participants reported that they were open to or even enthusiastic about using the new technologies and were supportive of their introduction into the medication process. Overall, the majority rated the new system as beneficial to daily clinical practice, provided the technical performance was high.

The Relationship between Health Information Technology Laboratory Tracking Systems and Hospital Financial Performance and Quality.

The objective of this study is to explore the relationship between hospitals Health Information Technology (HIT), and financial and quality performance. The study merged the 2017 Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) Healthcare Cost Report Information System, American Hospital Association Annual Survey, and two CMS Hospital Compare datasets. A total of 3002 hospitals were analyzed using multivariate analysis. We found that hospitals with laboratory tracking systems reported better financial performance on five financial performance measures. Policymakers should consider developing policies that facilitate exploration and adoption of various hospital HIT capabilities that measurably improves hospital quality of care.

Real-world effectiveness of infection prevention interventions for reducing procedure-related cardiac device infections: Insights from the veterans affairs clinical assessment reporting and tracking program.

OBJECTIVE: To measure the association between receipt of specific infection prevention interventions and procedure-related cardiac implantable electronic device (CIED) infections. DESIGN: Retrospective cohort with manually reviewed infection status. SETTING: Setting: National, multicenter Veterans Health Administration (VA) cohort. PARTICIPANTS: Sampling of procedures entered into the VA Clinical Assessment Reporting and Tracking-Electrophysiology (CART-EP) database from fiscal years 2008 through 2015. METHODS: A sample of procedures entered into the CART-EP database underwent manual review for occurrence of CIED infection and other clinical/procedural variables. The primary outcome was 6-month incidence of CIED infection. Measures of association were calculated using multivariable generalized estimating equations logistic regression. RESULTS: We identified 101 procedure-related CIED infections among 2,098 procedures (4.8% of reviewed sample). Factors associated with increased odds of infections included (1) wound complications (adjusted odds ratio [aOR], 8.74; 95% confidence interval [CI], 3.16-24.20), (2) revisions including generator changes (aOR, 2.4; 95% CI, 1.59-3.63), (3) an elevated international normalized ratio (INR) >1.5 (aOR, 1.56; 95% CI, 1.12-2.18), and (4) methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus colonization (aOR, 9.56; 95% CI, 1.55-27.77). Clinically effective prevention interventions included preprocedural skin cleaning with chlorhexidine versus other topical agents (aOR, 0.41; 95% CI, 0.22-0.76) and receipt of ß-lactam antimicrobial prophylaxis versus vancomycin (aOR, 0.60; 95% CI, 0.37-0.96). The use of mesh pockets and continuation of antimicrobial prophylaxis after skin closure were not associated with reduced infection risk. CONCLUSIONS: These findings regarding the real-world clinical effectiveness of different prevention strategies can be applied to the development of evidence-based protocols and infection prevention guidelines specific to the electrophysiology laboratory.

Capturing Daily Disease Experiences of Adolescents With Chronic Pain: mHealth-Mediated Symptom Tracking.

BACKGROUND: Chronic pain is a common problem in adolescents that can negatively impact all aspects of their health-related quality of life. The developmental period of adolescence represents a critical window of opportunity to optimize and solidify positive health behaviors and minimize future pain-related disability and impaired work productivity. This research focuses on the development and evaluation of a smartphone-based pain self-management app for adolescents with chronic pain. OBJECTIVE: The objectives of this study were to characterize (1) the feasibility of deploying a mobile health (mHealth) app (iCanCope) to the personal smartphones of adolescent research participants; (2) adherence to daily symptom tracking over 55 consecutive days; (3) participant interaction with their symptom history; and (4) daily pain-related experiences of adolescents with chronic pain. METHODS: We recruited adolescents aged 15-18 years from 3 Canadian pediatric tertiary care chronic pain clinics. Participants received standardized instructions to download the iCanCope app and use it once a day for 55 days. Detailed app analytics were captured at the user level. Adherence was operationally defined as per the relative proportion of completed symptom reports. Linear mixed models were used to examine the trajectories of daily symptom reporting. RESULTS: We recruited 60 participants between March 2017 and April 2018. The mean age of the participants was 16.4 (SD 0.9) years, and 88% (53/60) of them were female. The app was deployed to 98% (59/60) devices. Among the 59 participants, adherence was as follows: low (4, 7%), low-moderate (14, 24%), high-moderate (16, 27%), and high (25, 42%). Most (49/59, 83%) participants chose to view their historical symptom trends. Participants reported pain intensity and pain-related symptoms of moderate severity, and these ratings tended to be stable over time. CONCLUSIONS: This study indicates that (1) the iCanCope app can be deployed to adolescents' personal smartphones with high feasibility; (2) adolescents demonstrated moderate-to-high adherence over 55 days; (3) most participants chose to view their symptom history; and (4) adolescents with chronic pain experience stable symptomology of moderate severity. TRIAL REGISTRATION: ClinicalTrials.gov NCT02601755; https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT02601755 (Archived by WebCite at http://www.webcitation.org/74F4SLnmc).

[Management of adverse events in an Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery Unit]. / Gestión de eventos adversos en un Servicio de Cirugía oral y Maxilofacial.

INTRODUCTION: Patient safety in oral and maxillofacial surgery is oriented towards providing patient care by means of adequate risk management that minimises adverse events and fosters a culture of safe clinical practices as the fundamental basis of quality health care. To implement preventive actions are implemented in order to improve patient safety and to reduce the incidence of adverse events, as well as to improve the quality of care. The aim of this report is to implement preventive measures in order to improve the health care of the patient in an Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery Unit by reducing the Adverse Events and proving good quality healthcare. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A longitudinal, prospective, single centre study was conducted using a methodology of analysis of modes of failure and effects of the management of potentially serious adverse events in the Oral and Maxillofacial surgical unit of the University Hospital of Granada (June-November 2017), as well as the preparation and implementation of a series of corrective measures. RESULTS: A total of 33 adverse events were recorded, with 10 of them considered as critical, distributed in different areas of care, and referred from Primary Health Care and from other hospitals. Seven preventive actions were implemented: information to the patient, training actions, improvements in the protocols and procedures, in the care process and clinical practice, as well as the need to set up an adequate checklist, and other miscellaneous. DISCUSSION: The implementation of preventive measures represent a notable advance in the prevention of harm to the patient and the organisation, involving healthcare staff in a safety culture oriented towards quality care.

Why high tech needs high touch: Supporting continuity of community primary health care.

BACKGROUND:  Integrated care through community-oriented primary care (COPC) deployed through municipal teams of community health workers (CHWs) has been part of health reform in South Africa since 2011. The role of COPC and integration of information and communication technology (ICT) information to improve patient health and access to care, require a better understanding of patient social behaviour. Aim: The study sought to understand how COPC with CHWs visiting households offering health education can support antenatal follow-up and what the barriers for access to care would be. Method: A mixed methodological approach was followed. Quantitative patient data were recorded on an electronic health record-keeping system. Qualitative data collection was performed through interviews of the COPC teams at seven health posts in Mamelodi and telephonic patient interviews. Interviews were analysed according to themes and summarised as barriers to access care from a social and community perspective. Results: An integrated COPC approach increased the number of traceable pregnant women followed up at home from 2016 - 2017. Wrong addresses or personal identification were given at the clinic because of fear of being denied care. Allocating patients correctly to a ward-based outreach team (WBOT) proved to be a challenge as many patients did not know their street address. Conclusion: Patient health data available to a health worker on a smartphone as part of COPC improve patient traceability and follow-up at home making timely referral possible. Health system developments that support patient care on community level could strengthen patient health access and overall health.

Case Study: Supply Chain Transformation in the UK National Health Service.

This case study provides evidence of the impact of the Scan4Safety program demonstrated in six National Health Service (NHS) Trusts, funded to achieve supply chain transformation to improve safety, quality and performance in the NHS in England. All 154 Trusts were mandated to adopt GS1 global standards for supply chain processes and Pan-European Public Procurement On-Line standards in 2014 to enable digital transactions across the NHS. The outcomes of this case reflect the early implementation of the program infrastructure in surgical theatre and cardiac programs. Outcomes include a 4:1 return on investment and projected savings of £1 billion pounds when scaled across the NHS.