31 Aug Opportunities for Improvement in Pediatric Resuscitation Across US EDs

MedicalResearch.com Interview with:
Marc Auerbach, MD, FAAP, MSc
Associate Professor of Pediatrics (Emergency Medicine) and of Emergency Medicine
Co-chair INSPIRE (International Network for Simulation Based Pediatric Innovation Research and Education)
Director, Pediatric Simulation
Yale Center for Medical Simulation;

MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings?

Response: Severely ill infants and children present to any of over 5000 United States Emergency Departments every day. A direct comparison of the quality of resuscitative care across EDs is challenging due to the low frequency of these high stakes events in individual EDs. This study utilized in-situ simulation-based measurement to compare the quality of resuscitative care delivered to two infants and one child by 58 distinct interprofessional teams across 30 EDs. Composite quality scores correlated with annual pediatric patient volume, with higher volume departments demonstrating higher scores.

The pediatric readiness score measures compliance with guidelines created by the American Academy of Pediatrics, the American College of Emergency Physicians and the Emergency Nurses Association. The pediatric readiness score correlated with composite quality scores measured by simulation.

MedicalResearch.com: What should readers take away from your report?

Response: There are opportunities for improvement in pediatric resuscitation across all US EDs. Differences in the quality of pediatric resuscitation measured by simulation exist across EDs.

MedicalResearch.com: What recommendations do you have for future research as a result of this study?

Response: All EDs should who care for children should engage in pediatric specific quality improvement, training and education. Resources to improve pediatric care are available through Emergency Medical Services for Children. These data can be used to inform the development of additional targeted interventions to improve pediatric resuscitative care across US EDs.

MedicalResearch.com: Is there anything else you would like to add?

Response: Additional work is needed to explore whether differences in quality are associated with variability in patient outcomes.

MedicalResearch.com: Thank you for your contribution to the MedicalResearch.com community.

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Last Updated on August 31, 2016 by Marie Benz MD FAAD