Multi-institutional quality improvement algorithm for home nasogastric tube care for neonates.

BACKGROUND: High-risk neonates continuing to need enteral nutrition, but otherwise medically ready for discharge home from the NICU, are often offered ongoing hospitalization for nasogastric tube (NGT) feeding, versus discharge after placement of gastrostomy tube. Our group developed an interdisciplinary algorithm to support a third option-discharge home with enteral nutrition via NGT. Our objective was to develop a cross-institutional and interdisciplinary pathway to optimize outcomes for neonates discharged with NGTs. METHODS: A program to support home NGT feeding use was created, "Passport Home Program," based upon feedback from parents, nurses, speech-language pathologists, otolaryngologists, and neonatal intensivists, amongst others, spanning four hospitals across our health system. RESULTS: Standardized educational materials for caregivers of neonates requiring ongoing NGT feeding on discharge were created and consist of an in-hospital curriculum with specific competency thresholds, including demonstrating NGT replacement and confirmation with pH test strips. A discharge kit, including a QR code for a video reviewing safe techniques for home NGT placement, is distributed, along with support staff contact information. Members of an emergency department were trained in neonatal NGT replacement in case of issues after business hours. Each patient is followed in a dedicated outpatient multi-disciplinary clinic. DISCUSSION: This is an interdisciplinary and multi-institutional effort to standardize a pathway for neonates discharged home from the NICU with NGTs. This has the potential to lead to earlier discharge, better outcomes for patients and families, as well as lower costs. This best practice algorithm serves as an example pathway applicable across fields of medicine.

Harnessing the power of electronic health records and open natural language data mining to capture meaningful patient experience during routine clinical care.

INTRODUCTION: Electronic health records (EHR) are a rich data source for both quality improvement and clinical research. Natural language processing can be harnessed to extract data from these previously difficult to access sources. OBJECTIVE: The objective of this study was to create and apply a natural language search query to extract EHR data to ask and answer quality improvement questions at a pediatric aerodigestive center. METHODS: We developed a combined natural language search query to extract clinically meaningful data along with International Statistical Classification of Diseases (ICD10) and Current Procedural Terminology (CPT) code data. This search query was applied to a single pediatric aerodigestive center to answer key clinical questions asked by families. Data were extracted from EHR data from first clinic visit, operative note, microbiology lab report, and pathology report for all new patients from 2020 to 2021. Included as three queries were: 1) if I bring my child to a pediatric aerodigestive center, how often will my child obtain a medical diagnosis without needing an intervention? 2) if my child has a diagnostic procedure, how often will a diagnosis be made? 3) if a diagnosis is made, can it be addressed during that endoscopic intervention? RESULTS: For the 711 new patients coming to the pediatric aerodigestive center from 2020 to 2021, only 26-32% required an interventional triple endoscopy (rigid/flexible bronchoscopy with esophagoduodenoscopy). Of these triple endoscopies, 75.7% resulted in a positive finding that enabled optimization of that child's care. Of the 221 patients who underwent diagnostic triple endoscopies, 40.7% underwent intervention at the same time for laryngeal cleft (injection or suture, dependent upon age). CONCLUSION: Here we created an effective model of open language search query to extract meaningful metrics of patient experience from EHR data. This model easily allows the EHR to be harnessed to create retrospective and prospective databases that can be readily queried to answer clinical questions important to patients. Such databases are widely applicable not just to pediatric aerodigestive centers but to any clinical care setting using an EHR.

Food allergy and complementary feeding.

The relationship between complementary feeding and the development of atopic disease is the source of significant interest and debate in both the scientific and lay communities. A small number of early studies, which had considerable influence on recommended feeding practices, reported protective effects associated with delaying the introduction of commonly allergenic foods such as cow's milk, egg, and nuts. Despite more conservative recommendations, however, food allergy prevalence has continued to rise. Our understanding of the development of food allergy, its relationship with IgE sensitization and atopic dermatitis, and the relationship of each of these outcomes with the timing of food introduction has evolved considerably. Based on multiple observational studies, and extrapolating from immunotherapy trials and animal models of mucosal immunity, there is mounting evidence that delayed introduction or avoidance of commonly allergenic foods is at best neutral and may be detrimental with regard to atopic outcomes. There is an obvious and critical need for additional high-caliber studies to further evaluate this connection. In the meantime, multiple health considerations, not allergy alone, should be involved in decisions regarding nutritional intake, including common allergenic foods, during the period of transition to the family diet.