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Showing results for tags 'Monitoring'.
Found 137 results
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Content ArticleThe authors of this research study, published in BMJ Quality & Safety looked at the issues of hazardous prescribing and inadequate monitoring in patients with mental health issues being managed in primary care. They identified a lack of data in this area, despite most patients with mental illness receiving treatment in a primary care setting. The study found that: 9.4% of patients ‘at risk’ triggered at least one indicator for potentially hazardous prescribing. The risk was greatest for patients aged 35–44, females and those receiving more than 10 repeat prescriptions. 90.2% of patients ‘at risk’ triggered at least one indicator for inadequate monitoring. The risk was particularly high in people under the age of 25, females and those with one or no repeat prescription. The authors of the study hope their findings will support providers to reduce risk and improve care for patients who receive mental health treatment in primary care.
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Content ArticleUnknown to its hypertension specialists, a major teaching hospital changed the cuffs on its sphygmomanometers from manufacturer-validated to a uniform washable alternative, in line with ‘Health and Safety’ concerns surrounding potential cross-contamination between patients. When clinic doctors suspected serious under-reading with the new cuffs, a systematic comparison was undertaken in 54 patients using two UM-101 sphygmomanometers: one using the original, manufacturer-supplied cuff and the other with the washable replacement. The study confirmed an average under-reading of 8±10/5±5 mm Hg using the washable cuff, and a third of patients with poorly controlled hypertension were considered normotensive, after using this cuff. The UM-101 sphygmomanometers have now been re-fitted with the original cuffs. Sphygmomanometer cuffs are not interchangeable between devices and a modicum of common sense should be shown to prevent changes made in the name of Health and Safety from having the opposite effect to that intended.
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Content ArticleThe purpose of this document from the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) is to provide information and guidance to all involved with the purchase, management and use of non-invasive blood pressure measurement devices. It reviews the advantages and disadvantages of mercury, aneroid, electronic manual sphygmomanometers and automated blood pressure measuring devices. This should help to ensure the most appropriate technology is selected for use.
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Content ArticleMaybe your blood pressure has been creeping up over time, or you’re starting treatment for hypertension. So your doctor suggests you buy a home blood pressure monitor to help keep track between office visits. Simple enough, right? But a quick check online reveals hundreds of different models — and even a bunch of apps for your smartphone. How do you even start to sort through all that without, well, spiking your blood pressure? This article highlights six things you need to know.
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Content ArticleBlood pressure (BP) has been measured with a cuff for over a 100 years. Recently, ‘tricorders’ and smartwatches that measure BP without a cuff using pulse transit time (PTT) have become available. These BP measurements are based on the inverse relationship between BP and PTT. PTT can be measured as the timing delay in a QRS complex on an EKG and the onset of a photoplethysmography wave, for example measured from a finger. Since these measurements are relatively more user‐friendly than conventional cuff‐based measurements they may aid in more frequent BP monitoring. Using a guidelines‐based protocol, Bard et al. investigated the accuracy and precision of two popular PTT‐based BP measuring devices: the Everlast TR10 fitness watch (Everlast, New York City, NY) and the BodiMetrics tricorder (BodiMetrics, Manhattan Beach, CA).
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Content ArticleUK guidelines recommend that assessment and monitoring of breathless, unwell, or high risk patients with suspected COVID-19 should include pulse oximetry. Guidance published in January 2021 by the World Health Organization includes a provisional recommendation for “use of pulse oximetry monitoring at home as part of a package of care, including patient and provider education and appropriate follow-up. In this BMJ Practice article, Tricia Greenhalgh and colleagues discuss the remote management of COVID-19 using home pulse oximetry.
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Content ArticleThis report from the NHS Race and Health Observatory, acknowledges the growing evidence suggesting there may be drawbacks when using pulse oximetry on darker skin. Whilst the picture on racial bias in pulse oximetry is still mixed, as a worst-case scenario, the application of this intervention can potentially have negative outcomes for patients with more pigmentation in their skin. To help counter potential health inequalities in this area, the report outlines a number of recommendations for healthcare, regulatory and research bodies.
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Content ArticleTelemetry monitoring of heart rates and rhythms was introduced in intensive care units in the 1960s, and since then it has expanded into patient rooms and units in noncritical care settings. It allows healthcare workers to watch the condition of many patients all at once and intervene quickly when their condition changes; however, if the technology is not used appropriately or the equipment malfunctions, relying on telemetry monitoring also risks patient harm. This study from Kukielka et al. looked at real-life cases of breakdowns in the processes and procedures regarding telemetry monitoring, such as user errors and miscommunication, and equipment failures, including broken transmitters and dead batteries. The lessons learned can help improve training and best practices to improve the safety of patients being monitored.
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Content ArticleIn conditions of intensive therapy, where the patients treated are in a critical condition, alarms are omnipresent. Nurses, as they spend most of their time with patients, monitoring their condition 24 h, are particularly exposed to so-called alarm fatigue. The purpose of this study from Lewandowska et al. is to review the literature available on the perception of clinical alarms by nursing personnel and its impact on work in the ICU environment.
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Content Article
Avoiding Brain Injury in Childbirth (ABC)
PatientSafetyLearning Team posted an article in Maternity
Preventable harm during labour can be catastrophic for parents, babies and families, as well as for the staff involved. Reducing avoidable brain injury in childbirth means building on everyone’s experiences and expertise, working together to improve care in labour for all. THIS Institute, in partnership with The Royal College of Midwives and The Royal College of Obstetricians & Gynaecologists, is inviting maternity staff, parents and birth partners from across the UK to contribute their views to their Avoiding Brain Injury in Childbirth (ABC) campaign. The focus is on monitoring and responding to babies’ wellbeing during labour and on managing the emergency complication at caesarean section known as impacted fetal head. The ABC campaign aims to give maternity staff tools and support to be able to provide the highest quality of care when there are concerns about the baby’s wellbeing during labour. It also aims to improve communication with everyone using maternity services and make sure they are listened to and involved in decisions about their care. -
Content ArticleThe aim of this review, published in EClinicalMedicine, was to analyse the implementation and impact of remote home monitoring models (virtual wards) for confirmed or suspected COVID-19 patients, identifying their main components, processes of implementation, target patient populations, impact on outcomes, costs and lessons learnt.
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Content ArticleThis document describes and sets out the NHS Delivery Framework 2018-2019, Reporting Guidance, NHS Delivery Measures, Summary of Revisions to Measures, Reporting Templates and Measures from 2017-18 that have not been carried forward into the 2018-19 NHS Delivery Framework.
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Content Article
ECRI's Risk Assessment
Patient Safety Learning posted an article in Improving systems of care
Keeping patients and staff safe is a top priority for every healthcare organisation. Leaders must be vigilant in continually monitoring, measuring, and improving risk, as well as identifying processes, environments, cultures and other factors affecting patient safety and organisational performance. ECRI’s Risk Assessments provide an efficient web-based solution for conducting such evaluations. These assessments collect multidisciplinary safety perspectives—from front-line workers to the executive suite—with reporting and analysis dashboards to help identify opportunities for improvement. -
Content ArticleThis article looks at an incident of unsafe prescribing of haloperidol that resulted in overdose and the death of an elderly patient.
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Content ArticleThe Health System Response Monitor (HSRM) has been designed in response to the COVID-19 outbreak to collect and organise up-to-date information on how countries are responding to the crisis. It focuses primarily on the responses of health systems but also captures wider public health initiatives. This is a joint undertaking of the WHO Regional Office for Europe, the European Commission, and the European Observatory on Health Systems and Policies.
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Content ArticleThe Covid-19 pandemic exposed the need to harness and leverage digital tools and technology for remote patient monitoring (RPM). This article explores the benefits of RPM for clinicians as well as how it can be changed to improve outcomes.
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Content ArticleThis free e-learning course by the World Health Organization (WHO) examines the five general steps of inequality monitoring in the context of immunisation programmes. The 'WHO Immunization Agenda 2030: a global strategy to leave no one behind' envisions “a world where everyone, everywhere, at every age, fully benefits from vaccines for good health and well-being.” The course is approximately two hours long and is primarily aimed at monitoring and evaluation officers for immunisation, and people who have basic knowledge and experience working with immunisation data.
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Community PostI would be interested to know, if overnight, patients who score 0-2 on NEWS which has not changed with no concerns since the last set of observations, what your trust policy is on observation frequency? Does your trust require observations to be carried out 4 hourly minimum regardless of patients NEWS score and stability? Or if there are no concerns and the patient is clinically stable with consecutive NEWS 0-2 that they do not have observations taken overnight? Looking forward to hearing what other trust practices are.
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Community Post
Patient deterioration out of hours
Emma Richardson posted a topic in Improving patient safety
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Hello I would be interested in hearing from anyone who has done any work on how we monitor patient deterioration overnight? I am currently working on am improvement project looking at patient surveillance of deterioration during night shifts. I have chosen this project as part of a Clinical Improvement Scholarship Program I am on. The program is combined with my day job as a Critical Care Outreach Sister as well as enabling me to develop my research and leadership skills alongside implementing improvements in clinical care. I am in the early stages of my work, however I have some literature and local research around deficiencies in how we monitor patients for deterioration overnight (as well as personal experiences as a CCOT nurse) which is why this topic is so important to me. I would be interested in hearing from anyone who has worked on anything similar, or can point me in the direction of anyone who maybe able to help. Thank you ?- Posted
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Content ArticleA series of videos on managing deterioration, including: Introduction to sepsis and serious illness Preventing the spread of infection Soft signs of deterioration NEWS What is it Measuring the respiratory rate Measuring oxygen saturation Measuring blood pressure Measuring the heart rate Measuring the level of alertness How to measure temperature Calculating and recording a NEWS score Structured communications and escalation Treatment escalation plans and resuscitation Recognising deterioration in people with a learning disabilities How to use your pulse oximeter and Covid-19 diary.
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Content Article
Impact of virtual wards
Patient_Safety_Learning posted an article in Digital health and care service provision
Access outline their virtual ward offer and 10 case studies from NHS trusts and other organisations from which they present findings as testimony, to show the impact of virtual wards on the NHS’ ability to provide care. -
Content ArticlePatients are vulnerable during emergency episodes outside the formal care sector, for example, care provided by paramedics responding to a stroke or heart attack at home. Yet much less is known about the safety of Emergency Medical Services (EMS) as compared with primary or secondary healthcare. This relative lack of information is important given there are aspects of EMS care that create unique patient safety challenges. This BMJ Editorial discusses how we can improve patient safety in the Emergency Medical Services.
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Content ArticlePostpartum hypertensive disorders pose a serious health risk to new mothers; nearly 75 percent of maternal deaths associated with hypertensive disorders occur in the postpartum period. For the past decade, the obstetrics department at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania (HUP) has tried to lower these risks by checking patients’ blood pressure after they are released from the hospital. Their initial efforts to have patients return to the office for an in-person blood pressure check shortly after discharge yielded disappointing results, so the team revamped their approach and ultimately developed an extremely successful program called Heart Safe Motherhood. The programme started when the team at HUP gave a small group of women a blood pressure cuff each. They told them they would receive text messages after discharge instructing them to take their blood pressure at 8am, and that they would need to send in the reading. At 1pm, they would get another text requesting that they send their blood pressure again. This article describes how Heart Safe Motherhood evolved to improve the likelihood of mothers submitting their readings, and how the programme was scaled up to five hospitals in the group. It looks at how the approach has helped tackled health inequalities and improved the safety of postpartum mothers.
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Content ArticleDelays in the detection or treatment of postpartum haemorrhage can result in complications or death. A blood-collection drape can help provide objective, accurate, and early diagnosis of postpartum haemorrhage, and delayed or inconsistent use of effective interventions may be able to be addressed by a treatment bundle. Authors of this study, published in the New England Journal of Medicine, conducted an international, cluster-randomized trial to assess a multicomponent clinical intervention for postpartum haemorrhage in patients having vaginal delivery. The intervention included a calibrated blood-collection drape for early detection of postpartum haemorrhage and a bundle of first-response treatments (uterine massage, oxytocic drugs, tranexamic acid, intravenous fluids, examination, and escalation), supported by an implementation strategy (intervention group).
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Content ArticlePostpartum haemorrhage is a leading cause of maternal deaths. Now a new study points to a surprisingly simple and inexpensive solution. If the woman lies on a plastic sheet with a small transparent pouch at the other end to collect the blood, the medical team has an immediate sense of how much danger she's in and can take swift action. Read the full article, published by NPR, via the link below.
