CODE FAST: a quality improvement initiative to reduce door-to-needle times

2015 ◽  
Vol 8 (7) ◽  
pp. 661-664 ◽  
Author(s):  
Leslie Busby ◽  
Kumiko Owada ◽  
Samish Dhungana ◽  
Susan Zimmermann ◽  
Victoria Coppola ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Quality Improvement ◽  
Univariate Analysis ◽  
Substantial Reduction ◽  
Heart Association ◽  
Time Of Day ◽  
Quality Improvement Project ◽  
Quality Improvement Initiative ◽  
Improvement Project ◽  
Process Improvements ◽  
Before And After

BackgroundRapid delivery of IV tissue plasminogen activator (tPA) in qualifying patients leads to better clinical outcomes. The American Heart Association has reduced target door-to-needle (DTN) times from 60 to 45 min in the hopes of continued process improvements across institutions.ObjectiveTo start a quality improvement project called CODE FAST in order to reduce DTN times at our institution.Materials and methodsWe retrospectively reviewed data from our internally maintained database of patients treated with intravenous tPA before and after implementation of the CODE FAST protocol. We assessed demographic information, time of day and times of arrival to first image and delivery of tPA in patients from February 2014 to February 2015. Outcomes were assessed based on discharge to home. Univariate analysis was performed to assess for improvement in DTN times before and after implementation of the protocol.ResultsA total of 93 patients (41 pre-CODE FAST and 52 post-CODE FAST) received IV tPA during the study period. Patients were equally matched between the two groups except that in the pre-CODE FAST era patients receiving tPA were younger and more likely to be men. There was a substantial reduction in door-to-imaging time from a median of 16 to 8 min (p<0.0001) and DTN time with a reduction in the median from 62 to 25 min (p<0.0001). In logistic regression modeling, there was a trend towards more discharges to home in patients treated during the CODE FAST era.ConclusionsWe present a quality improvement project that has been overwhelmingly successful in reducing DTN time to <30 min. The template we present may be helpful to other institutions looking to reduce their DTN times and may also reduce costs as we note a trend towards more discharges to home.

Abstract WP401: Code Fast: a Quality Improvement Initiated to Reduce Door to Needle Times

Stroke ◽  
2016 ◽  
Vol 47 (suppl_1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Leslie N Busby ◽  
Kumiko Owada ◽  
Samish Dhungana ◽  
VIctoria Coppola ◽  
Rebecca Ruban ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Quality Improvement ◽  
Univariate Analysis ◽  
Substantial Reduction ◽  
Heart Association ◽  
Time Of Day ◽  
Quality Improvement Project ◽  
Night Time ◽  
Improvement Project ◽  
Process Improvements ◽  
Information Time

Introduction: Rapid delivery of intravenous t-PA in qualifying patients leads to better clinical outcomes. The American Heart Association has reduced target door to needle (DTN) times from 60 to 45 minutes in the hopes of continued process improvements across institutions. We thus started a quality improvement project called CODE FAST in order to reduce DTN times at our institution. These results were recently reported and published. Materials and Methods: We retrospectively reviewed data from our internally maintained database of patients treated with intravenous t-PA prior to and after implementation of the CODE FAST protocol. We assessed demographic information, time of day and times of arrival to first image and delivery of t-PA in patients from February 2014- February 2015. Outcomes were assessed based on discharge to home. Univariate analysis was performed to assess for improvement in DTN times prior to and after implementation of the protocol. We will present the latest data from February 2014- January 2016. Results: We previously reported 93 patients (41 pre-CODE FAST and 52 post-CODE FAST) received IV t-PA during the study period. We showed a substantial reduction in door to imaging time from a median of 16 to 8 minutes (p<0.0001) and DTN time with a reduction in the median from 62 to 25 minutes (p<0.0001). In logistic regression modelling, there was a trend towards more discharges to home in patients treated during the CODE FAST era. From March 2015-July 2015 an additional 57 patients have received t-PA under the CODE FAST protocol. The median door DTN remains 27 minutes. We will report further analysis comparing day and night time analysis and further strategies to further reduce DTN times. Conclusions: We present a quality improvement project that continues to be an overwhelmingly success in reducing DTN to less than 30 minutes. Further opportunies exist to reduce time further and improve discharge outcomes.

scholarly journals Assessing the practice of written referrals to neuroradiology and how this process can be improved and standardised

BJPsych Open ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 7 (S1) ◽  
pp. S181-S182
Author(s):  
Fraser Currie ◽  
Rashi Negi ◽  
Hari Shanmugaratnam
Keyword(s):  
Quality Improvement ◽  
Scoring Systems ◽  
Quality Improvement Project ◽  
Cortical Atrophy ◽  
Secondary Outcome ◽  
Quality Improvement Initiative ◽  
Exclusion Criteria ◽  
Quality Of Information ◽  
Improvement Project

AimsThis quality improvement project aims to improve the quality of information provided in the referrals from the older adult psychiatry department to radiology when requesting neuroradiological imaging.The secondary outcome aims to standardise information on the referral proforma. We hypothesise that this improved referral proforma will lead to improved quality of reporting from the radiology department, which will form the second stage of this quality improvement project.A further area of interest of this exercise is to establish whether standardised radiological scoring systems are requested in the referral, as these can be utilised as a means to standardise reported information.MethodRetrospective electronic case analysis was performed on 50 consecutive radiology referrals for a period of 3 months from November 2019 to January 2020. Data were obtained from generic MRI and CT referral proforma and entered into a specifically designed data collection tool. Recorded were patient demographics, provisional diagnosis, modality of imaging, use of ACE-III cognitive score, radiological scoring systems, and inclusion and exclusion criteria.ResultResults from 50 referrals have shown: 60% were male, 40% female. Average patient age of 74, ranging from 49 to 95. 58% were referred for CT head with 42% for MRI head. More than half of referrals quoted the ACE-III score. 26% of referrals stated exclusion criteria such as space occupying lesions, haemorrhages or infarcts. 10% of referrals requested specific neuro-radiological scoring scales. Specific scales which were requested included GCA (global cortical atrophy), MTA scale (medial temporal atrophy), Koedam scale (evidence of parietal atrophy) and Fazekas (evidence of vascular changes). Only 80% of referrals included the patients GP details on the referral form.Conclusion1. This quality improvement initiative has highlighted that the current level of information in referring patient to radiology is variable and dependent on the referrer.2. All referrals should state exclusion criteria as per the NICE guidelines on neuroimaging in diagnosis of dementia.3. Preliminary evidence suggests that requesting specific radiological rating scales could improve the quality of information received in the imaging report. The second part of this quality improvement initiative will aim to explore the impact of requesting these scales routinely.

A quality improvement project to reduce restrictive interventions in a mental health service

2021 ◽  
pp. 1-12
Author(s):  
Darren Savarimuthu ◽  
Katja Jung
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Quality Improvement ◽  
Positive Impact ◽  
Essential Elements ◽  
Quality Improvement Project ◽  
Psychiatric Ward ◽  
Quality Improvement Initiative ◽  
Successful Implementation ◽  
Evidence Based ◽  
Improvement Project

Background/aims This article describes a quality improvement project that aimed to reduce restrictive interventions on an acute psychiatric ward. In light of a service level agreement and based on a trust-wide target, the purpose of the project was to reduce restrictive interventions by 20% within a period of 6 months. It was also anticipated that a least restrictive environment could have a positive impact on patient experience. Methods Three evidence-based interventions were introduced to the ward during the quality improvement project. These included positive behaviour support, the Safewards model and the productive ward initiative. Results There was a 63% reduction in restrictive interventions over a 6-month period through the successful implementation of a series of evidence-based interventions to manage behaviours that challenge on the mental health ward. Conclusions The project identified collaborative team working, staff training and adequate resources as essential elements in the success of the quality improvement initiative. However, co-production was found to be crucially significant in bringing sustainable changes in ward environment and in addressing restrictive practices.

Reducing the Contamination Rate and the Unnecessary Requesting of Blood Culture Test through Quality Improvement Project

2021 ◽  
Vol 30 (1) ◽  
pp. 87-91
Author(s):  
Tamer Mohamed ◽  
Ashraf A Askar ◽  
Jamila Chahed
Keyword(s):  
Quality Improvement ◽  
Blood Culture ◽  
Armed Forces ◽  
Blood Cultures ◽  
Quality Improvement Project ◽  
Contamination Rate ◽  
Improvement Project ◽  
Culture Test ◽  
Negative Results ◽  
Before And After

Background: Blood stream infections are major leading causes of morbidity and mortality in hospitalized patients. Increasing the awareness of the clinicians and nurses about the proper protocol of blood culture test is very important in reducing the contamination rate and the unnecessary requesting of blood culture. Objectives: to reduce the contamination rate and the unnecessary requesting of blood culture from different departments through implementation of hospital wide Quality Improvement Project (QIP). Methodology: Blood cultures were tested in the Microbiology Laboratory of Najran Armed Forces hospital, Saudi Arabia, in the period from June 2019 to July 2020 and their results were compared before and after the implementation of the QIP. Results: The comparison between the blood cultures results before and after QIP implementation showed statistically significant (19.6%) reduction in the contamination rate, (14%) reduction in the total number of blood culture requests and (11.6%) reduction in the negative results rate. Conclusion: The reduction in the total number, negative results and contamination rate of blood culture test after QIP implementation were considered as performance indicators that the recommendations of QIP were effective and implemented strictly.

scholarly journals A Quality Improvement Project to Increase the Rate of HPV Vaccination Initiation in Adolescents

2018 ◽  
Vol 3 (2) ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Quality Improvement ◽  
Hpv Vaccination ◽  
Vaccination Rate ◽  
Quality Improvement Project ◽  
Human Papilloma Virus Vaccine ◽  
Quality Improvement Initiative ◽  
Initiation Rate ◽  
Improvement Project ◽  
Vaccination Rates ◽  
Implementation Period

The vaccination rate of the human papilloma virus vaccine [9vHPV] is low, with only 63% of eligible females and 50% eligible males receiving the vaccine in 2016. The aim of this quality improvement project was to increase the initiation rate of HPV vaccination at Smyrna Pediatrics by 20%, from 3.6% to 4.3% over four weeks. Two physicians, one nurse practitioner, and two medical assistants implemented this quality improvement initiative. There is a lack of education and standardized communication about HPV and 9vHPV to prevent against the virus. A standardized script was created so that all conversations between healthcare professionals and patients and their parents or guardians included the wording of the 9vHPV being recommended rather than optional. Educational material from the CDC was the standard handout given to each adolescent and their parent or guardian. Standardized education and communication was to be provided at each adolescent visit of the 125 eligible adolescents seen during the four-week implementation period, 4% (n = 5) agreed to receive the 9vHPV vaccine. With a baseline of 3.6% (n = 4), there was an 11.1% increase of initiation of 9vHPV. The use of standardized education documents presented to all patients and their parents or guardians established health education as the mainstay of the project and provided information about the importance of prevention and protection from the virus that the vaccine prevents. The implementation of results over a longer period of time may prove to be more effective for the practice’s increase of vaccination rates overall.

EP.TU.653Improving surgical admission clerking by introducing a standardized clerking proforma: a quality improvement project

2021 ◽  
Vol 108 (Supplement_7) ◽  
Author(s):  
Georgios Geropoulos ◽  
Clio Kennedy ◽  
Stanley Tang ◽  
Ahmed Elhamshary ◽  
Sara Rakhshani-Moghadam ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Quality Improvement ◽  
Health Care Providers ◽  
Quality Improvement Project ◽  
Surgical Patient ◽  
Care Providers ◽  
Allied Health Professionals ◽  
Improvement Project ◽  
Operative Care ◽  
Detailed Medical History ◽  
Before And After

Abstract Aims When clerking new admissions several critical actions must be performed in a timely and accurate way. These include reviewing referral letters, obtaining a detailed medical history and documenting the patient’s plan. This is of paramount importance, especially in high volume surgical hospitals. The aim of this quality improvement project is to evaluate a standardized electronic proforma for surgical patient clerking in an attempt to minimize missing information that can compromise peri-operative care. Methods A short questionnaire assessing the clerking process was handed out to doctors and allied health professionals. It was completed before and after the introduction of the clerking proforma. Proportion confidence intervals (95% CI) compared for each answer before and after the proforma releasing. Results Domains with a statistically significant improvement were the admission reason, management, treatment escalation and venous thromboprophylaxis plan in patients on long term anticoagulation. After introduction of the proforma, feedback still implied that the social history needed to be more extensive. Further edits to the proforma in a second cycle include prompts regarding baseline function and ADLs, as well as existing packages of care. Conclusions Overall, the introduction of the surgical patient clerking proforma lead to an improvement of the quality of the clerking as assessed by standardized questionnaires. It is noteworthy that a complete clerking is correlated with more effective handover between health care providers, less medical errors, less treatment delays and improved patient outcomes.

Bridging the language gap: a co-designed quality improvement project to engage professional interpreters for women during labour

2017 ◽  
Vol 41 (5) ◽  
pp. 499 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jane Yelland ◽  
Mary Anne Biro ◽  
Wendy Dawson ◽  
Elisha Riggs ◽  
Dannielle Vanpraag ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Quality Improvement ◽  
Health Professionals ◽  
High Intensity ◽  
Quality Improvement Project ◽  
Quality Improvement Initiative ◽  
Improvement Project ◽  
Supportive Leadership ◽  
Language Services ◽  
Interpreter Use ◽  
Multidisciplinary Group

Objective The aim of the study was to improve the engagement of professional interpreters for women during labour. Methods The quality improvement initiative was co-designed by a multidisciplinary group at one Melbourne hospital and implemented in the birth suite using the plan-do-study-act framework. The initiative of offering women an interpreter early in labour was modified over cycles of implementation and scaled up based on feedback from midwives and language services data. Results The engagement of interpreters for women identified as requiring one increased from 28% (21/74) at baseline to 62% (45/72) at the 9th month of implementation. Conclusion Improving interpreter use in high-intensity hospital birth suites is possible with supportive leadership, multidisciplinary co-design and within a framework of quality improvement cycles of change. What is known about the topic? Despite Australian healthcare standards and policies stipulating the use of accredited interpreters where needed, studies indicate that services fall well short of meeting these during critical stages of childbirth. What does the paper add? Collaborative approaches to quality improvement in hospitals can significantly improve the engagement of interpreters to facilitate communication between health professionals and women with low English proficiency. What are the implications for practice? This language services initiative has potential for replication in services committed to improving effective communication between health professionals and patients.

scholarly journals Appropriate utilisation of cardiac telemetry monitoring: a quality improvement project

2019 ◽  
Vol 8 (2) ◽  
pp. e000560
Author(s):  
Ky B Stoltzfus ◽  
Maharshi Bhakta ◽  
Caylin Shankweiler ◽  
Rebecca R Mount ◽  
Cheryl Gibson
Keyword(s):  
Quality Improvement ◽  
Patient Care ◽  
Kansas City ◽  
Heart Association ◽  
The United States ◽  
Quality Improvement Project ◽  
Appropriate Use ◽  
Academic Medical Centre ◽  
Improvement Project ◽  
Number Of Patients

For hospitals located in the United States, appropriate use of cardiac telemetry monitoring can be achieved resulting in cost savings to healthcare systems. Our institution has a limited number of telemetry beds, increasing the need for appropriate use of telemetry monitoring to minimise delays in patient care, reduce alarm fatigue, and decrease interruptions in patient care.This quality improvement project was conducted in a single academic medical centre in Kansas City, Kansas. The aim of the project was to reduce inappropriate cardiac telemetry monitoring on intermediate care units. Using the 2004 American Heart Association guidelines to guide appropriate telemetry utilisation, this project team sought to investigate the effects of two distinct interventions to reduce inappropriate telemetry monitoring, huddle intervention and mandatory order entry. Telemetry utilisation was followed prospectively for 2 years.During our initial intervention, we achieved a sharp decline in the number of patients on telemetry monitoring. However, over time the efficacy of the huddle intervention subsided, resulting in a need for a more sustained approach. By requiring physicians to input indication for telemetry monitoring, the second intervention increased adherence to practice guidelines and sustained reductions in inappropriate telemetry use.

A report on a quality improvement initiative to increase midwives' confidence in attending home birth

2020 ◽  
Vol 28 (4) ◽  
pp. 260-267
Author(s):  
Angela Lynn Horler
Keyword(s):  
Quality Improvement ◽  
Birth Rate ◽  
Home Birth ◽  
Quality Improvement Project ◽  
Quality Improvement Initiative ◽  
Improvement Project ◽  
Leadership Model ◽  
Community Midwives ◽  
Long Course

Since the dissolvement of the ‘supervisor of midwives’ role, NHS England has introduced a new midwifery role: the professional midwifery advocate (PMA) via the advocating for education and quality improvement (A-EQUIP) model. The author undertook the long course PMA study, which is a six-month module. A requirement of the module was to implement a quality improvement project within the student PMA NHS Trust. As part of a wider project under the ‘Better Births Maternity Transformation Programme’ (2016) to increase the home birth rate for the trust, the author chose to implement a quality improvement project to improve the (shared) home birth equipment available to community midwives, aiming to increase midwives’ confidence in attending home birth. Through the use of quality improvement tools and utilising a compassionate leadership model, the project aim was met: 75% of midwives reported they felt increased confidence in attending home birth with the new equipment offering.

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