Evaluating the Impact of Radio Frequency Identification Retained Surgical Instruments Tracking on Patient Safety: Literature Review.

BACKGROUND: Retained surgical instruments (RSI) are one of the most serious preventable complications in operating room settings, potentially leading to profound adverse effects for patients, as well as costly legal and financial consequences for hospitals. Safety measures to eliminate RSIs have been widely adopted in the United States and abroad, but despite widespread efforts, medical errors with RSI have not been eliminated. OBJECTIVE: Through a systematic review of recent studies, we aimed to identify the impact of radio frequency identification (RFID) technology on reducing RSI errors and improving patient safety. METHODS: A literature search on the effects of RFID technology on RSI error reduction was conducted in PubMed and CINAHL (2000-2016). Relevant articles were selected and reviewed by 4 researchers. RESULTS: After the literature search, 385 articles were identified and the full texts of the 88 articles were assessed for eligibility. Of these, 5 articles were included to evaluate the benefits and drawbacks of using RFID for preventing RSI-related errors. The use of RFID resulted in rapid detection of RSI through body tissue with high accuracy rates, reducing risk of counting errors and improving workflow. CONCLUSIONS: Based on the existing literature, RFID technology seems to have the potential to substantially improve patient safety by reducing RSI errors, although the body of evidence is currently limited. Better designed research studies are needed to get a clear understanding of this domain and to find new opportunities to use this technology and improve patient safety.

Identifying Information Resources for Patients in the Intensive Care Unit and Their Families.

BACKGROUND: Providing information to patients in intensive care units and their families is challenging. Patients often are admitted unexpectedly and experience stress and uncertainty. One source of stress has been identified as unclear, uncoordinated, or inconsistent communication and information. Despite the need for information, no centrally located, easily accessible, standardized intensive care unit education content exists. OBJECTIVE: To identify educational content for patients in the intensive care unit and their families across 4 different hospitals, develop a general content database, and organize the general content into a framework for education of patients and their families. METHODS: Educational content for patients in the intensive care units of 4 participating hospitals was collected and a gap analysis was performed. RESULTS: Key content format and categories were identified. Educational content was organized into an information pathway divided into 3 phases: intensive care unit arrival; understanding the intensive care unit and partnering in care; and intensive care unit transitions. The gap analysis revealed substantial variation in content format and categories. CONCLUSIONS: Structuring a digital learning center using different stages of the patient's stay in the intensive care unit and placing resources in the context of an information pathway can help coordinate education for these patients and their families, and creates a consistent communication guide for clinicians as well. The optimal digital format should be considered in designing the learning center.

Nurse, Patient, and Care Partner Perceptions of a Personalized Safety Plan Screensaver.

A patient safety plan dashboard was developed that captures disparate data from the electronic health record that is then displayed as a personalized bedside screensaver. The dashboard aligns all care team members, including patients and families, in the safety plan. The screensaver content includes icons that pertain to common geriatric syndromes. In two phases, interviews were conducted with nurses, nursing assistants, patients, and informal caregivers in a large, tertiary care center. End user perceptions of the content and interface of the personalized safety plan screensavers were identified and strategies to overcome the barriers to use for future iterations were defined. Many themes were identified, ranging from appreciation of the clinical decision support provided by the screensavers to the value of the safety-centric content. Differences emerged stemming from each group of end users' role on the care team. All feedback will inform requirements for improvements to the personalized safety plan screensaver. [Journal of Gerontological Nursing, 43(4), 15-22.].

Strategies for Managing Mobile Devices for Use by Hospitalized Inpatients.

Despite the potential advantages, implementation of mobile devices and ongoing management pose challenges in the hospital environment. Our team implemented the PROSPECT (Promoting Respect and Ongoing Safety through Patient-centeredness, Engagement, Communication and Technology) project at Brigham and Women's Hospital. The goal of PROSPECT is to transform the hospital environment by providing a suite of e-tools to facilitate teamwork among nurses, physicians, patients and to engage patients and care partners in their plan of care. In this paper, we describe the device-related decisions and challenges faced including device and accessory selection, integration, information and device security, infection control, user access, and ongoing operation and maintenance. We relate the strategies that we used for managing mobile devices and lessons learned based on our experiences.