Improving Telemetry use in the Acute Assessment Unit.

BACKGROUND AND AIMS: Despite published guidelines, telemetry use is inappropriate in 25-43% of cases. This impacts patient safety and telemetry effectiveness. QI methodology was used to review telemetry in a hospital acute medical unit with the aim of reducing inappropriate use and addressing alarm fatigue. METHODS: A 'Telemetry Indication Form' was created. Eight weeks of baseline data was collated before introducing the 'Indication Form'. Four plan-do-study-act cycles were conducted. At each cycle, data was analysed using statistical process control charts. RESULTS: Inappropriate telemetry use significantly reduced from 32% to 4%. Total telemetry use also fell. Unfortunately, interventions to address alarm rates did not result in significant reduction in false alarms. CONCLUSIONS: A 'Telemetry Indication Form' has significant potential to improve patient safety through reducing inappropriate use.

Mindfulness in Pregnancy: A Brief Intervention for Women at Risk.

INTRODUCTION: The U.S. has the highest rate of preterm birth (PTB), of all developed countries, especially among African American women. Social determinants of health and inequalities in health outcomes are understudied areas. The intersectionality of race and socioeconomic status has been shown to contribute to chronic stress, stress has been shown to be associated with PTB, yet the mechanisms that affect pregnancy outcomes have not been explicit. Mindfulness-based Interventions that address stress reduction during pregnancy may improve quality of life during pregnancy, perhaps enhancing resilience, and be on the pathway to reducing the risk of negative pregnancy outcomes such as PTB. METHODS: We over-enrolled African American women and those covered by Medicaid to reach women at higher risk for PTB and included women in substance use treatment. Participants were enrolled in a 6-week mindfulness in pregnancy (MIP) intervention at the obstetric clinic. Sociodemographic characteristics and psychosocial assessments were obtained at three time points. RESULTS: We enrolled 35 women who self-identified as: non-white, Medicaid recipients, aged 25-35 years, with high school or less education. We found reductions in perceived stress, pregnancy specific stress, trait anxiety and depression and increases in mindfulness that sustained post-intervention at 2 and 7 months. DISCUSSION: Social determinants and stress in particular have been associated with negative birth outcomes. This paper describes a brief intervention and results of MIP tailored to women who have significantly more stress due to race, poverty, homelessness, substance use treatment and other comorbid health risks including PTB.

The effectiveness and variation of acute medical units: a systematic review.

PURPOSE: To evaluate the evidence for the effectiveness of acute medical units (AMUs) compared with other models of care and compare the components of AMU models. DATA SOURCES: Six electronic databases and grey literature sources searched between 1990 and 2014. STUDY SELECTION: Studies reporting on AMUs as an intervention for unplanned medical presentations to hospital with the inclusion of all outcome measures/study designs/comparators. DATA EXTRACTION: Data on study characteristics/outcomes/AMU components were extracted by one author and confirmed by a second. DATA SYNTHESIS: Seventeen studies of 12 AMUs across five countries were included. The AMU model was associated with a reduction in-hospital length of stay (LOS) in all analyses ranging from 0.3 to 2.6 days; and a reduction in mortality in 12 of the 14 analyses with the change ranging from a 0.1% increase to a 8.8% reduction. Evidence relating to readmissions and patient/staff satisfaction was less conclusive. There was variation in the following components of AMUs: admission criteria, entry sources, functions and consultant work patterns. CONCLUSION: This review provides evidence that AMUs are associated with reductions in-hospital LOS and, less convincingly, mortality compared with other models of care when implemented in European and Australasian settings. Reported estimates may be affected by residual confounding. This review reports heterogeneity in components of the AMU model. Further work to identify what constitutes the key components of an AMU is needed to improve the quality and effectiveness of acute medical care. This is of particular importance given the escalating demand on acute services.

Variation in Acute Medicine Units: Measuring it, understanding it, and reducing it.

Although there are national recommendations on the function of Acute Medicine Units (AMUs), there is no single agreed best model of care. Additionally, robust data is not always available to determine whether system changes have resulted in improvement. We designed an Excel file to interface with the hospital patient management system to provide real-time data on a number of metrics including AMU length of stay (AMULOS), mortality and readmissions. This demonstrated that improving consultant continuity of care was associated with a reduction in AMULOS and reduced variation in AMULOS. Additionally, the Excel file provides timely access to consultant and individual patient-level data. These data are clinically owned, and critical for both unit governance and quality improvement work. We would encourage all AMUs to develop a similar dataset to allow standardised comparisons between units, and better understanding of the association between models of care and patient outcomes.

Systematic Review of Women Leading and Participating in Nephrology Randomized Clinical Trials.

Introduction: Women are underrepresented in the leadership of and participation in randomized controlled trials (RCTs). We conducted a bibliometric review of nephrology RCTs to examine trial leadership by women and participation of women in nephrology RCTs. Methods: A bibliometric review of RCTs published in top medical, surgical, or nephrology journals was conducted using MEDLINE and EMBASE from January 2011 to December 2021. Leadership by women as corresponding authors, women trial participation, and trial characteristics were examined with duplicate independent data extraction. Logistic regression was used to examine associations between trial characteristics and women leadership and trial participation. Results: A total of 1770 studies were screened and 395 RCTs met eligibility criteria. The number (%) of women in corresponding, first, and last authorship positions were as follows: 89 (22%), 109 (28%), and 74 (19%), respectively, without change over time (P = 0.94). The median percentage (interquartile range [IQR]) of women trial participants was 39.0% (13.5%) with no difference between women or men lead authors (P = 0.15). Men lead authors were statistically less likely to enroll women in RCTs. Women lead authors were less likely to be funded by industry (odds ratio [OR]: 0.30; 95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.14-0.63; P = 0.002) or lead international trials (OR: 0.11; 95% CI: 0.01-0.83; P = 0.03). Trials with sex-specific eligibility criteria were more likely to have women leaders (OR: 2.56; 95% CI: 1.19-5.49; P = 0.02) than those without. Discussion: Gender inequalities in RCT leadership and RCT participation exist in nephrology and did not improve over time. Strategies to improve inequalities need to be implemented and evaluated.

Implementation of a 1-Day Living Kidney Donor Evaluation Program: A Qualitative Analysis of Donor Candidate and Stakeholder Perspectives.

Introduction: A lengthy donor evaluation process hinders living donor kidney transplantation (LDKT). At The Ottawa Hospital, 1-day evaluation process was recently developed, with a goal to accelerate the determination of donor suitability. The major objective of this study was to solicit feedback from donor candidates and key stakeholders who participated in the 1-day living kidney donor evaluation process, to determine the program's acceptability and factors influencing its implementation elsewhere. Methods: Semi-structured interviews were conducted with donor candidates who participated in the 1-day living kidney donor evaluation process, and with stakeholders who are instrumental to the implementation strategy. Interviews were conducted via videoconference or by telephone from May 2022 to December 2022. Directed content analysis was conducted using 2 unique frameworks for stakeholder and donor candidate interviews. Results: Our study included 13 stakeholders and 18 donor candidates, of whom 16 (89%) were women and 7 (39%) proceeded to kidney donation. Eighteen (100%) perceived the process to be both time-effective and cost-effective, due to reduced travel and missed work time. Thirteen (72%) felt that the 1-day evaluation may accelerate determination of donor suitability. Sequential virtual sessions with a nurse and social worker in advance of the evaluation day were seen as providing critical education and support. Among stakeholders, 11 (85%) emphasized donor candidate care and faster candidacy determinations. Conclusion: The 1-day evaluation process was preferred by most donor candidates, and was perceived as time-effective and cost-effective by most interviewees. An expedited, 1-day evaluation may accelerate determination of donor suitability and improve LDKT rates.

"You can't stop the waves, but you can learn how to surf": Realized mindfulness in practice for parenting women in recovery.

BACKGROUND: The opioid crisis is a public health issue, contributing to poor maternal child health outcomes. A Mindfulness Based Parenting (MBP) intervention, part of the "Practicing Safety Mindfulness Project for Mothers in Drug Treatment" (PSMDT) study, was previously tested as an intervention to mitigate stress and improve parenting domains in a sample of parenting women in treatment for substance use disorder. METHODS: Qualitative data from focus groups and Mindfulness Based Parenting group teacher process notes were analyzed to understand how participants applied mindfulness to their daily lives and how mindfulness affected their relationship with their child(ren). RESULTS: Thematic analyses revealed three overarching major themes: 1) Supportive Tools to Assist with Bringing Mindfulness into Daily Living; 2) Application of Embodied Tenets of Mindfulness to Perspective and Behavior and 3) Mindfulness Based Parenting and Recovery. Transference of mindfulness skills to parenting was evident through both focus group and process note data, illustrating how mindfulness behaviors were incorporated into family life. Data also revealed how tools utilized in the MBP intervention affected participant recovery. CONCLUSIONS: MBP intervention shows utility in improving parenting and recovery domains. Data from this study will inform future iterations of this intervention and this contextual analysis can be used to inform other recovery programs looking to utilize mindfulness as an adjunctive treatment.

The acute medical unit model: A characterisation based upon the National Health Service in Scotland.

BACKGROUND: Acute medical units (AMUs) receive the majority of acute medical patients presenting to hospital as an emergency in the United Kingdom (UK) and in other international settings. They have emerged as a result of local service innovation in the context of a limited evidence base. As such, the AMU model is not well characterised in terms of its boundaries, patient populations and components of care. This makes service optimisation and development through strategic resource planning, quality improvement and research challenging. AIM: This study aims to evaluate a national set of AMUs with the intent of characterising the AMU model. METHODS: Twenty-nine AMUs in Scotland were identified. Data were collected by semi-structured interviews with multidisciplinary healthcare professionals working in each AMU. A draft report was produced for each unit and verified by a unit representative. The unit reports were then analysed to develop a conceptual framework of key components of AMUs and a service definition of the boundaries of acute medical care. RESULTS: Acute medical care in Scotland can be described as being delivered in "acute medical services" rather than geographically distinct AMUs. Twelve key components of AMU care were identified: care areas, functions, populations, patient flow, support services, communication, nurse care, allied healthcare professional care, non-consultant medical care, consultant care, patient assessment and specialty care. DISCUSSION: This empirically derived characterisation of the AMU model is likely to be of utility to practitioners, managers, policy makers and researchers: it is relevant on an operational level, will aid quality improvement and is a foundation to needed further research into how best to deliver care in AMUs. This is important given the central role AMUs play in the journey of the majority of patients presenting to hospital acutely in Scotland, the UK and internationally.

Adolescent tracheal intubation in an adult urban emergency department: a retrospective, observational study.

OBJECTIVES: Tracheal intubation is the cornerstone of advanced emergency airway management in children and adults and there is good-quality data characterizing intubation in both groups. There are, however, few published studies on emergency tracheal intubation in adolescents. We carried out an observational study to characterize tracheal intubation in adolescents. METHODS: We analysed data from a previously collected Emergency Department Intubation Registry. We included all attempts at tracheal intubation performed in our adult emergency department between 1999 and 2011. We recorded the indication for intubation, the staff involved, the technique and drugs used, and the rates of successful intubation and adverse events. We classified patients into three age groups: 13-16 years (adolescent), 17-24 years (young adult) and at least 25 years (older adult). RESULTS: Trauma was the most common indication for intubation in adolescents, and rapid sequence induction was used in 88% of cases. Ninety-nine percent of tracheal intubations in adolescent patients were successful on the first or the second attempt, no adolescent underwent more than three attempts and none required a surgical airway. The initial intubation attempt in adolescents was more likely to be performed by an anaesthetist (P<0.005). The first attempt success rate was higher (P<0.01) and adverse event rate was lower (P<0.05) in adolescents than in adults. Hypotension was the only adverse event recorded in adolescents; this occurred in three patients (4.5%). CONCLUSION: Our findings suggest that the airway in adolescent patients can be managed successfully and safely in an adult emergency department where there is close collaboration between anaesthetists and emergency physicians.