Paediatric major incident triage: A Delphi process to determine clinicians' attitudes and beliefs within the United Kingdom and Ireland.

AIM: Triage is key to effective management of major incidents, yet there is scarce evidence surrounding the optimal method of paediatric major incident triage (MIT). This study aimed to derive consensus on key components of paediatric MIT among healthcare professionals responsible for triage during paediatric major incidents. METHODS: Two-round online Delphi consensus study delivered July 2021-October 2021, including participants from pre-hospital and hospital specialities responsible for triage during paediatric major incidents. A 5-point Likert scale was used to determine consensus, set a priori at 70%. RESULTS: 111 clinicians completed both rounds; 13 of 17 statements reached consensus. Positive consensus was reached on rescue breaths in mechanisms associated with hypoxia or asphyxiation, mobility assessment as a crude discriminator and use of adult physiology for older children. Whilst positive consensus was reached on the benefits of a single MIT tool across all adult and paediatric age ranges, there was negative consensus in relation to clinical implementation. CONCLUSIONS: This Delphi study has established consensus among a large group of clinicians involved in the management of major incidents on several key elements of paediatric major incident triage. Further work is required to develop a triage tool that can be implemented based on emerging and ongoing research and which is acceptable to clinicians.

Paediatric traumatic cardiac arrest: the development of an algorithm to guide recognition, management and decisions to terminate resuscitation.

INTRODUCTION: Paediatric traumatic cardiac arrest (TCA) is a high acuity, low frequency event. Traditionally, survival from TCA has been reported as low, with some believing resuscitation is futile. Within the adult population, there is growing evidence to suggest that with early and aggressive correction of reversible causes, survival from TCA may be comparable with that seen from medical out-of-hospital cardiac arrests. Key to this survival has been the adoption of a standardised approach to resuscitation. The aim of this study was, by a process of consensus, to develop an algorithm for the management of paediatric TCA for adoption in the UK. METHODS: A modified consensus development meeting of UK experts involved in the management of paediatric TCA was held. Statements discussed at the meeting were drawn from those that did not reach consensus (positive/negative) from a linked three-round online Delphi study. 19 statements relating to the diagnosis, management and futility of paediatric TCA were initially discussed in small groups before each participant anonymously recorded their agreement with the statement using 'yes', 'no' or 'don't know'. In keeping with our Delphi study, consensus was set a priori at 70%. Statements reaching consensus were included in the proposed algorithm. RESULTS: 41 participants attended the meeting. Of the 19 statements discussed, 13 reached positive consensus and were included in the algorithm. A single statement regarding initial rescue breaths reached negative consensus and was excluded. Consensus was not reached for five statements, including the use of vasopressors and thoracotomy for haemorrhage control in blunt trauma. CONCLUSION: In attempt to standardise our approach to the management of paediatric TCA and to improve outcomes, we present the first consensus-based algorithm specific to the paediatric population. While this algorithm was developed for adoption in the UK, it may be applicable to similar healthcare systems internationally.

Targeting Glycemic Control After Pediatric Cardiac Surgery: The Influence of Age on Insulin Requirement.

OBJECTIVE: Factors influencing the development of hyperglycemia and pattern of insulin requirement in children undergoing cardiac surgery are poorly understood. This study investigated the impact of age on the pattern of hyperglycemia and insulin requirement in children after cardiac surgery. DESIGN: Cohort study, based on a prospectively collected dataset for patients enrolled into the Control of Hyperglycemia in Pediatric Intensive Care trial. SETTING: A 24-bedded multidisciplinary PICU. PATIENTS: Children randomized to the tight glycemic control arm (target blood glucose, 4-7 mmol/L [72-126 mg/dL]) of the Control of Hyperglycemia in Pediatric Intensive Care trial following cardiac surgery. Children were categorized into four age groups (neonate, 1-30 d; infant, 31-365 d; young child, 1-5 yr; older child, 5-16 yr) for analyses of patterns of hyperglycemia and insulin requirement over the 12-hour period following initiation of insulin. INTERVENTIONS: Insulin titration was performed based on blood glucose value and rate of change of blood glucose using an algorithm developed for the Control of Hyperglycemia in Pediatric Intensive Care trial. MEASUREMENTS AND MAIN RESULTS: Of 92 children, 72 children (78%) randomized to the tight glycemic control group developed hyperglycemia (blood glucose, > 7 mmol/L [126 mg/dL]) and received insulin. Older age was associated with higher blood glucose and a higher insulin dose per kilogram over the first 3 hours of the study period (p ≤ 0.02). Cumulative insulin dose was significantly higher in older children (median, 1.3 U/kg [range, 0.2-5.75]) compared with other age groups (neonate, 0.37 [0.05-2.2]; infant, 0.45 [0.05-2.2]; young child, 0.35 [0.05-0.81]) (p = 0.004). Age group, rather than body mass index, carbohydrate intake, or cardiac surgery variables, was the only variable (coefficient: 1.14 ± 0.3; p < 0.001) associated with cumulative insulin dose on multivariate analysis. CONCLUSIONS: When tight glycemic control is targeted in children who have undergone cardiac surgery, children in the older child age group (5-16 yr) require insulin at significantly higher doses. Further study is needed to understand the mechanisms involved.

Family presence during resuscitation in paediatric and neonatal cardiac arrest: A systematic review.

CONTEXT: Parent/family presence at pediatric resuscitations has been slow to become consistent practice in hospital settings and has not been universally implemented. A systematic review of the literature on family presence during pediatric and neonatal resuscitation has not been previously conducted. OBJECTIVE: To conduct a systematic review of the published evidence related to family presence during pediatric and neonatal resuscitation. DATA SOURCES: Six major bibliographic databases was undertaken with defined search terms and including literature up to June 14, 2020. STUDY SELECTION: 3200 titles were retrieved in the initial search; 36 ultimately included for review. DATA EXTRACTION: Data was double extracted independently by two reviewers and confirmed with the review team. All eligible studies were either survey or interview-based and as such we turned to narrative systematic review methodology. RESULTS: The authors identified two key sets of findings: first, parents/family members want to be offered the option to be present for their child's resuscitation. Secondly, health care provider attitudes varied widely (ranging from 15% to >85%), however, support for family presence increased with previous experience and level of seniority. LIMITATIONS: English language only; lack of randomized control trials; quality of the publications. CONCLUSIONS: Parents wish to be offered the opportunity to be present but opinions and perspectives on the family presence vary greatly among health care providers. This topic urgently needs high quality, comparative research to measure the actual impact of family presence on patient, family and staff outcomes. PROSPERO REGISTRATION NUMBER: CRD42020140363.