Documentation of Assessments and Interventions Using a Pediatric Preoperative Risk Assessment Checklist in the Postanesthesia Care Unit: A Quality Improvement Initiative.

PURPOSE: Describe the impact of the implementation of an evidence-based pediatric preoperative risk assessment (PPRA) checklist on the frequency of postanesthesia care unit (PACU) nursing assessments and interventions in children at risk for respiratory complications during emergence from anesthesia. DESIGN: Prospective pre-/postdesign. METHODS: Pediatric perianesthesia nurses assessed 100 children preintervention according to current standard. After nurses received pediatric preoperative risk factor (PPRF) education, another 100 children were assessed postintervention using the PPRA checklist. Pre-/postpatients were unmatched for statistical purposes due to two different groups. Frequency of PACU nursing respiratory assessments/interventions was evaluated. FINDINGS: Demographic variables, risk factors, frequency of nursing assessments/interventions were summarized in pre-/postinterventions. Significant differences (P < .001) were noted between pre-/postintervention groups with increased frequency of postnursing assessments/interventions that correlated with increased risk factors and weighted risk factors. CONCLUSIONS: By identifying total PPRFs, PACU nurses used their plan of care to frequently assess and pre-emptively intervene with children who had increased risk factors to prevent or mitigate respiratory complications on emergence from anesthesia.

Development of an Evidence-Based Pediatric Preoperative Risk Assessment Checklist.

PURPOSE: To describe how a pediatric preoperative risk assessment (PPRA) checklist was developed to inform perianesthesia nurses of potential postanesthesia care unit (PACU) respiratory complications. DESIGN: Evidence-based practice approach. METHODS: A systematic search was conducted using PubMed, CINAHL and Cochrane Library databases for this project. In addition, an integrative review process was conducted to develop an assessment checklist of evidence-based pediatric preoperative risk factor criteria associated with PACU respiratory complications. Evidence-based review focused on summarizing and appraising current research for quality levels for each of the individual pediatric preoperative risk factor that comprised the assessment checklist. FINDINGS: Eleven risk categories were established: Age, American Society of Anesthesiologists Physical Status, gender, general anesthesia, airway comorbidities, syndromes/congenital anomalies, pulmonary comorbidities, African American ethnicity, obesity, neurologic comorbidities, and cardiac comorbidities. Multidisciplinary experts came to consensus on content and face validity as well as reliability of the PPRA checklist. CONCLUSIONS: The PPRA checklist presents a rapid way to communicate through handoff the preoperative "big picture" to interpret children's acuity and comprehensive risk for significant pediatric respiratory adverse events in the PACU.

Patients' Perceptions of Importance for Self-Administered Correct Site Surgery Checklist: A Multisite Study.

PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to describe and validate the association between patient's self-administered correct site checklist and perceptions of importance for safe surgery. DESIGN: A multisite nonexperimental, quantitative, descriptive study. METHODS: A convenience sample of 173 adult patients from four different geographical multisite hospitals was included in the study. Inclusion criteria were age 18 to 75 years old, scheduled for surgery/procedure with laterality and ability to follow instructions. After IRB approval, investigators explained the purpose of the study, process and obtained consent from willing participants. Participants with clinical or behavioral limitations were excluded from the study. Participants completed a 24 item survey before and during surgery using a four-point Likert scale from one (not important) to four (extremely important). Descriptive data was analyzed using means, standard deviations, and percentage. All data was summarized and analyzed with STATA 12. FINDINGS: Most of the participants perceived the importance of the survey checklist items positively implying that the active engagement is an important role for safe surgery. However, a few participants reported some of the items as not important/somewhat important: "It is on my left or right side" (6.9%); "surgery on my: (state your limb) and (right or left site) (1.9-3%); "check electronic access or copy of imaging with correct name and site" (14.9%); "state your name and birthday" (4%), "check correct ID bracelet information" (2.9%) and "believe in having an active role in preventing error" (2.3%). Some participants responded, "My surgeon knows it or surgery has been scheduled".  Findings indicated that even though the importance of correct site surgery is critical for patient's surgery, a few patients reported it as noncritical and relied on healthcare team for their safety. CONCLUSIONS: This study validated the importance of the patients' perceived roles in promoting safe, correct site surgery and by engaging patients in mitigating correct site surgical errors. Therefore, inclusion of patients as an integral part of the healthcare team is necessary through education and encouragement to speak out.

Music Listening as a Postanesthesia Care Unit (PACU) Nursing Intervention for Laparoscopic Radical Prostatectomy Patients: A Randomized Comparative Clinical Trial.

PURPOSE: Randomized comparative mixed method approach with qualitative inquiry study's aim sought to determine if there was a difference in pre/post-intervention State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI) scores and postanesthesia pain scores between two music listening groups of laparoscopic radical prostatectomy patients. DESIGN: Prospective randomized comparative mixed method approach with a qualitative inquiry. METHODS: Sample size of 77 male participants assigned by a table of random numbers to Spotify patient-preferred music selection Group I (n = 37) or minimalist hypnotic music with guided relaxation breathing (MHMGRB) instructional narrative Group II (n = 40). Outcome measures used patients' STAI questionnaire and reported PACU admission and discharge pain scores. RESULTS: Both Groups I and II had reduced pain scores at discharge as compared to admission; both groups had a significant reduction (P = .046 Group I, and Group II (P = .002), but changes for comparative groups (I and II) were not significant between the two groups (P = .53). CONCLUSIONS: Study revealed that both patient-preferred selected music and MHMGRB can meaningfully reduce patients' anxiety and PACU pain scores.

Preoperative Risk Factors Associated With PACU Pediatric Respiratory Complications: An Integrative Review.

PURPOSE: This article reviews state of the science of preoperative risk factors associated with postanesthesia care unit (PACU) pediatric respiratory complications. DESIGN: An integrative review. METHODS: A search of PubMed, Cumulative Index to Nursing and Allied Health Literature (CINAHL), MEDLINE, Scopus, Cochrane, and Joanna Briggs Institute databases was performed. Thirty-one articles, published between 2006 and 2018, were appraised for quality and the level of evidence using the Johns Hopkins Nursing Evidence-Based Practice Model. FINDINGS: These articles were grouped into the following categories: age, American Society of Anesthesiologists status, gender, airway comorbidities, syndromes, anomalies, pulmonary comorbidities, ethnicity, obesity, neurologic comorbidities, and cardiac comorbidities. CONCLUSIONS: Evidence identified significant preoperative and anesthesia risk factors that are associated with PACU pediatric respiratory complications. This article reveals the importance for the perioperative team to identify, assess for, communicate, and develop a management plan for pediatric respiratory complications.

Decreasing Pediatric PACU Noise Level and Alarm Fatigue: A Quality Improvement Initiative to Improve Safety and Satisfaction.

PURPOSE: To describe how a pediatric postanesthesia care unit used a two-phased approach of bundled interventions to reduce unit noise levels and improve staff perceptions of their work environment. DESIGN: Pre/post design. METHODS: Postanesthesia care unit sound levels and monitor alarms were measured at baseline and after implementing both project phases. Nursing staff members were surveyed at baseline and after completion of the project. FINDINGS: Monitor alarms were reduced by more than 50% after Phase I. However, noise measurement data did not reflect a difference in sound levels between baseline and intervention phases. Despite this, staff perceived the unit as much quieter. CONCLUSIONS: The reduction in monitor alarms did not cause an appreciable change in sound levels as measured by noise dosimeters in either intervention phase. Despite these findings, nurses perceived a quieter and more pleasant workplace. These impressions might have resulted from subjective expectations versus actual volume levels, or they might owe to the reduction in incidence of alarms themselves, which they had viewed as nuisance sounds.

Normothermia and patient comfort: a comparative study in an outpatient surgery setting.

ASPAN guidelines for the prevention of unplanned perioperative hypothermia define normothermia as a core temperature between 36 and 38 degrees C and an acceptable level of warmth. Over a six-month period, more than 30% of the same-day surgery patients experienced hypothermic core temperatures on admission to the preoperative unit. The purpose of the study was to compare two preoperative warming methods (forced-air gowns vs traditional warmed cotton blankets) on oral body temperatures, and patients reported "thermal" comfort in ambulatory surgery patients. A repeated measures experimental design study included 150 subjects in Pre-op who were randomly assigned to either the control warmed blankets group or the experimental forced-air gown group. Oral temperatures and thermal comfort assessments were measured every 30 minutes while the patients were in Pre-op, and on admission and discharge from the Phase I PACU. There was no significant difference in postoperative temperature between the subjects warmed with blankets and the warm-air gowns. Subjects warmed with the warm-air gowns reported higher comfort scores after 30 minutes of warming than those warmed with blankets. The change in comfort score from baseline to 30 minutes post warming was greater in the warm-air gown group (P = .001), indicating that warm-air gowns contribute to patients' increased thermal comfort.

ASPAN's Delphi study on national research: priorities for perianesthesia nurses in the United States.

Prudent nursing practice mandates the best, scientific evidence available. The complexity of perianesthesia practice, management, and education, coupled with required competencies within these domains, generate problems demanding answers. ASPAN's financial and human resources, however, are limited. Therefore, ASPAN must be able to articulate research priorities. The purpose of this study was to identify and prioritize the research questions related to perianesthesia practice, management, and education. A three-round Delphi study conducted with perianesthesia nursing experts determined research priorities for perianesthesia nursing practice. Research problems were identified and refined into research questions. Questions were ranked for their priority. Research priorities focused on the following themes: evidence supporting ASPAN standards, staffing ratios, nurse fatigue, adverse patient outcomes, patient care issues related to intensive care unit (ICU) overflow, obstructive sleep apnea, pain management, glycemic control, and clinical critical care competencies. This study advances the mission of ASPAN by identifying the top national perianesthesia research priorities related to practice, management, and education, and should guide researchers in their continued exploration of the science of perianesthesia nursing.

Nursing considerations in the geriatric surgical patient: the perioperative continuum of care.

Although aging is a natural process, caring for an older person is not the same as caring for a middle-aged adult person. The perioperative and perianesthesia nurses need to be competent in geriatric nursing care and possess specialized knowledge and skills related to a myriad of geriatric issues. This article focuses on the special needs of the elderly population and how the perioperative nursing team may address their care best.

Perianesthesia nursing advocacy: an influential voice for patient safety.

Perianesthesia nurses are called to advocate for their patients, promote a safe work environment, and contribute to the continued advancement of the nursing profession. Nurses must demonstrate vigilance in their nursing care to protect patients from harm. It is an ethical and legal responsibility to request physicians to review with patients their informed consents when they report they do not understand or have questions about the surgical procedure. Likewise, nurses need to alert managers and administrators when they experience unsafe work environments, such as actual or potential nurse staffing issues, unsafe nurse-to-patient ratios, medication errors, and nurse fatigue. This article focuses on the valuable role perianesthesia nurses play in patient advocacy by: (1) speaking out on behalf of the patient, (2) assuring a safe work environment, (3) assessing for nurse fatigue, and (4) advocating patient safety for the global nursing profession.

Development and initial testing of the perianesthesia safe practices instrument: an ASPAN pilot study.

The perianesthesia environment of care is a unique high-risk health care setting that has a high susceptibility to error because of the vulnerability of patients who are undergoing surgery and anesthesia as well as the high levels of activity in these units. Safe practice in this environment is essential to quality patient care and positive patient outcomes. Consequently, ASPAN conducted a descriptive cross-sectional pilot study to test initial reliability and validity of the Perianesthesia Safe Practices Survey Instrument. The instrument was designed to assess specific safe practices in perianesthesia areas by identifying the following: (1) what are the current perianesthesia safety practices, (2) what are the recommended safety practices that are not in place, and (3) what are the differences in safety practices within areas along the perianesthesia continuum of care. Thirty-six respondents found the instrument to be clear, easy to complete, and containing appropriate content. The alpha coefficients for internal consistency for the unit specific components were preadmission testing (.79), pre-op (.94), Phase I PACU recovery (.92), and Phase II PACU recovery (.90). The results of this pilot study provided information about areas of excellence and areas for improvement for safe clinical practice in the specialty setting, as well as initial reliability and validity for the safe practices questionnaire.