Application of quality improvement analytic methodology in emergency medicine research: A comparative evaluation.

OBJECTIVE: Quality improvement (QI) analytic methodology is rarely encountered in the emergency medicine literature. We sought to comparatively apply QI design and analysis techniques to an existing data set, and discuss these techniques as an alternative to standard research methodology for evaluating a change in a process of care. METHODS: We used data from a previously published randomized controlled trial on triage-nurse initiated radiography using the Ottawa ankle rules (OAR). QI analytic tools were applied to the data set from this study and evaluated comparatively against the original standard research methodology. RESULTS: The original study concluded that triage nurse-initiated radiographs led to a statistically significant decrease in mean emergency department length of stay. Using QI analytic methodology, we applied control charts and interpreted the results using established methods that preserved the time sequence of the data. This analysis found a compelling signal of a positive treatment effect that would have been identified after the enrolment of 58% of the original study sample, and in the 6th month of this 11-month study. CONCLUSIONS: Our comparative analysis demonstrates some of the potential benefits of QI analytic methodology. We found that had this approach been used in the original study, insights regarding the benefits of nurse-initiated radiography using the OAR would have been achieved earlier, and thus potentially at a lower cost. In situations where the overarching aim is to accelerate implementation of practice improvement to benefit future patients, we believe that increased consideration should be given to the use of QI analytic methodology.

Clinical outcomes and patient satisfaction of a pharmacist-managed, emergency department-based outpatient treatment program for venous thromboembolic disease.

OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study was to evaluate the efficacy, safety and patient satisfaction outcomes of our pharmacist-managed, emergency department (ED)-based outpatient treatment program for venous thromboembolism (VTE) disease. METHODS: We conducted a prospective cohort study of all patients who were enrolled in the Vancouver General Hospital (VGH) outpatient VTE treatment program over a 7-year period (1999-2006). Efficacy outcomes include recurrent VTE events at 3 and 6 months following discharge from the program. Safety evaluation included major and minor bleeding complications and the development of thrombocytopenia during the acute phase of therapy. Patient satisfaction was assessed using an 18-question patient satisfaction survey, which was mailed to all patients following discharge from the program. RESULTS: Overall, 305 patients were included in the study. Of the 260 evaluable patients, 2 patients (0.8%, 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.2-2.7) experienced a recurrent VTE at 3 months and 5 patients (1.9%, 95% CI 0.8-4.4) had a recurrence at 6 months. One patient (0.3%, 95% CI 0.1-1.8) experienced a major bleeding complication. Seven patients (2.3%, 95% CI 1.1-4.7) experienced a minor bleeding complication and no patient developed thrombocytopenia. Overall, 96.1% were comfortable having their condition treated as an outpatient and 85.7% felt it was more convenient to return to hospital daily for medications and assessment than to be admitted to hospital. Finally, 96.9% of respondents were very satisfied or satisfied with the treatment they received in the outpatient program, and 96.1% would enroll again if future treatment was indicated. CONCLUSION: Our pharmacist-managed, ED-based outpatient treatment program for VTE disease is safe, effective and achieves a high level of patient satisfaction.

Effect of Triage Nurse Initiated Radiography Using the Ottawa Ankle Rules on Emergency Department Length of Stay at a Tertiary Centre.

OBJECTIVE: To determine the effect of triage nurse initiated radiographs using the Ottawa Ankle Rules (OAR) on emergency department (ED) throughput. We hypothesized OAR use would reduce median ED length of stay (LOS) by 25 minutes or more. METHODS: A randomized controlled trial was conducted at a tertiary centre ED with an annual census of over 90,000 patients. Adult patients presenting within 10 days of isolated blunt ankle trauma were eligible. Participants were randomly assigned to standard triage or OAR application by 15 explicitly trained triage nurses. Our primary outcome was ED LOS. Secondary outcomes included triage nurses' and patients' satisfaction. A power calculation indicated 142 patients were required. The Mann-Whitney U test was used to compare the medians between the two groups. RESULTS: Of 176 patients with blunt ankle injury screened, 146 were enrolled (83.0%); baseline characteristics in the two groups were similar. The median/mean ED LOS in the control and OAR groups were 128/143 minutes and 108/115 minutes respectively (median difference 20 minutes; p=0.003). Agreement in OAR use between emergency physicians and nurses was moderate (kappa 0.46/0.77 for foot/ankle rule components), and satisfaction of both nurses and participants was high. CONCLUSION: Triage nurse initiated radiography using OAR leads to a statistically significant decrease of 20 minutes in the median ED LOS at a tertiary care centre. The overall impact of implementing such a process is likely site-specific, and the decision to do so should involve consideration of the local context.

Outpatient treatment of venous thromboembolic disease based in an emergency department.

PURPOSE: The efficacy, safety, and patient satisfaction of an emergency department (ED)-based outpatient program providing treatment for venous thromboembolic disease (VTD) were studied. METHODS: A prospective cohort study of patients enrolled in a hospital outpatient VTD treatment program was conducted from June 1999 to September 2003. Endpoints included recurrent VTD at three and six months following discharge from the program, minor and major bleeding, and thrombocytopenia during the acute phase of therapy. Patient satisfaction was assessed with an 18-question survey that was mailed to all patients following discharge from the program. RESULTS: A total of 162 patients were included. Of the 142 evaluable patients, no patient experienced recurrent VTD at three months, while at six months, 2 patients (1.4%; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.2-5.0%) had recurrence. No patient experienced major bleeding or thrombocytopenia, while 4 (2.5%; 95% CI, 0.8-6.2%) had minor bleeding. Ninety-seven percent of the patients were comfortable having their condition treated on an outpatient basis, and 85.1% felt it was more convenient to return to the hospital daily for medications and assessment than to be admitted to the hospital. Overall, 97.7% of the respondents were satisfied or very satisfied with the treatment received in the outpatient program, and 94.0% said they would enroll again if future treatment was indicated. CONCLUSION: An ED-based outpatient VTD treatment program was safe and effective and appeared to achieve a high level of patient satisfaction.

Compliance with the Canadian Association of Emergency Physicians' asthma clinical practice guidelines at a tertiary care emergency department.

INTRODUCTION: Although evidence-based clinical practice guidelines (CPGs) exist, emergency department (ED) asthma management remains highly variable. Our objective was to compare asthma management at a tertiary care ED with that advised by the Canadian Association of Emergency Physicians' (CAEP) asthma CPG and current best practice. METHODS: This medical record study enrolled patients between the ages of 19 and 60 years with a previous diagnosis of asthma who were seen for an acute asthma exacerbation at the Vancouver General Hospital ED in 2008. Standard methodology guidelines for medical record review were followed, including explicitly defined criteria and determination of interrater reliability. Primary outcomes were the proportion of cases with the following: objective assessment of severity using peak expiratory flow (PEF), use of systemic corticosteroids (SCSs) in the ED and at discharge, prescription for any inhaled corticosteroids (ICSs), and documentation of outpatient follow-up. RESULTS: A total of 204 patient encounters were enrolled. Kappa values for interrater assessment ranged from 0.93 to 1.00. Compliance with primary outcomes was as follows: measurement of PEF, 90% (95% CI 85-94); use of SCSs in the ED, 64% (95% CI 57-71); prescription of SCSs at discharge, 59% (95% CI 51-67); prescription of any ICS at discharge, 51% (95% CI 41-61); and documentation of outpatient follow-up, 78% (95% CI 71-84). CONCLUSIONS: This study indicates an improvement in ED asthma care compared to previously published studies; however, discordance still exists between asthma management at a tertiary care ED and the CAEP asthma CPG and current best practice. Further research is warranted to understand the reasons for this finding.

Antibiotic resistance in isolates recovered from women with community-acquired urinary tract infections presenting to a tertiary care emergency department.

INTRODUCTION: We sought to determine the antibiotic susceptibility of organisms causing community-acquired urinary tract infections (UTIs) in adult females attending an urban emergency department (ED) and to identify risk factors for antibiotic resistance. METHODS: We reviewed the ED charts of all nonpregnant, nonlactating adult females with positive urine cultures for 2008 and recorded demographics, diagnosis, complicating factors, organism susceptibility, and risk factors for antibiotic resistance. Odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) for potential risk factors were calculated. RESULTS: Our final sample comprised 327 UTIs: 218 were cystitis, of which 22 were complicated cases and 109 were pyelonephritis, including 22 complicated cases. Escherichia coli accounted for 82.3% of all UTIs, whereas Staphylococcus saprophyticus accounted for 5.2%. In uncomplicated cystitis, 9.5% of all isolates were resistant to ciprofloxacin and 24.0% to trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole (TMP-SMX). In uncomplicated pyelonephritis, 19.5% of isolates were resistant to ciprofloxacin and 36.8% to TMP-SMX. In UTI (all types combined), any antibiotic use within the previous 3 months was a significant risk factor for resistance to both ciprofloxacin (OR 3.34, 95% CI 1.16-9.62) and TMP-SMX (OR 4.02, 95% CI 1.48-10.92). Being 65 years of age or older and having had a history of UTI in the previous year were risk factors only for ciprofloxacin resistance. CONCLUSIONS: E. coli was the predominant urinary pathogen in this series. Resistance to ciprofloxacin and TMP-SMX was high, highlighting the importance of relevant, local antibiograms. Any recent antibiotic use was a risk factor for both ciprofloxacin and TMP-SMX resistance in UTI. Our findings should be confirmed with a larger prospective study.

Fibrinolytic administration for acute myocardial infarction in a tertiary ED: factors associated with an increased door-to-needle time.

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the door-to-needle time for fibrinolytic administration for acute myocardial infarction (AMI) at Vancouver General Hospital (VGH) and identify factors associated with time prolongation. A retrospective chart review of all patients fibrinolysed for AMI in the ED at VGH was performed from January 1, 1998, to December 31, 1999, to determine door-to-needle time. A mixed-effects linear regression model was fit to the fibrinolytic data with the door-to-needle time to identify factors associated with prolonged times. One hundred forty patients were included in the final analysis. The mean and median door-to-needle times were 58 and 43 minutes, respectively. A door-to-needle time of under 30 minutes was achieved in 24.3% of patients, 30 to 40 minutes in 24.3%, 40 to 60 minutes in 22.1%, and over 60 minutes in 29.3%. EP prescribers without prior cardiologist consultation resulted in a significantly shorter door-to-needle time compared with requesting a cardiology consult before administration (mean [median] 41 [35] minutes vs. 108 [90] minutes respectively; P <.001). Patients who arrived by ambulance had shorter door-to-needle times than those who did not (mean [median] 50 [38] minutes vs. 71 [57] minutes, respectively; P =.008). Patients who arrived during the night shift (2300-0700 hrs) had significantly shorter door-to-needle times than those patients who arrived during the day (0700-1500 hrs) or afternoon (1500-2300) shifts (P = 0481); and patients who had a longer time from chest pain onset to ED arrival also had longer door-to-needle times (P =.0233). A significant number of AMI patients fibrinolysed at VGH do not meet the national guideline for door-to-needle time less than 30 minutes. Factors associated with this should be addressed to improve the care of patients with AMI.