Rapid response team saving lives at Backus
Dr. Belllino |
The Rapid Response Team is deployed on the A-3 patient floor at Backus. |
The Rapid Response Team at Backus Hospital is one of many ways the hospital addresses improving patient safety on a daily basis.
First established two years ago, the team of critical care clinicians can respond immediately when a patient's condition changes. Director of Quality Improvement Joseph Hughes said the goal of the Rapid Response Team is to reduce codes, and it has done that.
After every time the team is called, a committee makes an assessment of the event. One of the assessments tracks response time, with a goal of three minutes or less. Mr. Hughes said the average response time this year was about two-and-half minutes.
From Jan. 1 through July 31, 2007, there were 30 incidents in which a rapid response team was called. Of this group, 83% were discharged back to where they came from, whether that was home or a skilled nursing facility.
Jennifer Bellino, MD, Chief of the Hospitalist program at Backus, said having the Rapid Response Team available has greatly reduced the codes, which are when patients go into cardiac or respiratory arrest.
"While rapid response and code teams are similar in clinical staff, and in initial response, nurses have the ability to intervene at the first sign of someone taking a turn for the worse, which has prevented further deterioration of the patient's condition," Dr. Bellino said. "We can make medical interventions earlier to lessen the severity of the situation."
A nurse usually calls the team, but any member of the care team can activate it if they notice an unusual change or are concerned about a patient. There are defined vital sign changes that prompt a calling of the team as well.
Peter Shea, MD, Backus Medical Director, who oversees Quality Improvement at Backus, said staff members are becoming more comfortable in knowing when to call the team.
"This is a great way to identify changes in condition, for patients and staff to feel the resources are always available for optimal care," Dr. Shea said. "It is a patient safety initiative that focuses on putting the patient first, but in doing so it supports the staff and ultimately improves outcomes of care."
The specially-trained team is just part of the patient safety initiatives that have been incorporated as part of the hospital's participation in the Institute for Healthcare Improvement's 5 Million Lives Campaign.
Dr. Shea noted it is possible to have the critical care team activate at a moment's notice because of the hospitalist program, where trained medical doctors are at the hospital seven days a week, 24 hours a day.