Improving the frequency of symptom assessment in pediatric palliative care patients
awareness; child; clinical evaluation; comfort; conference abstract; e-mail; electronic medical record; hospital patient; human; human cell; information technology; outpatient; Palliative therapy; quality of life; root cause analysis; stem cell; symptom assessment; total quality management
High quality symptom management for children receiving palliative care relies on accurate and timely documentation of symptoms. Our pediatric palliative and comfort care team (PACT) previously established a mechanism in to assess and document symptoms in the electronic medical record (EMR) using a symptoms assessment tool modified from the Memorial Symptom Assessment Scale (MSAS). Our specific aim was to increase the percentage of MSAS evaluations completed and properly documented at the time of consult completion and at least weekly thereafter by PACT providers from 20% to 90% over six months. This project utilized standard quality improvement methodology. We began with a process map, documented process failures using a PARETO chart, and subsequently performed root cause analysis for each failure. Multiple tests of change were run for the following interventions: an initial educational session, MSAS badge reminder cards, adding MSAS awareness to our morning patient huddle, notification of individual completion rates via email, public posting of individual completion rates, a visual reminder with a colorful stamp on daily patient list, modification to the EMR patient list view and EMR flowsheet interface where MSAS is documented. We also performed in-depth reviews of any failures that were identified. Within 4 months of implementation the aim was exceeded and a median of 100% of patients had documented MSAS evaluations. This was considered a significant improvement based on the Institute for Healthcare Improvement Scale. These results have been sustained for an additional 8 months. Factors that impacted success included active engagement of all team members in the improvement process, frequent recognition and treatment of new symptoms, and ongoing updates regarding individual completion rates. Our dependence on the EMR was a limiting factor in sustainability as not all parts of the process were able to be automated and some steps still depend on human factors. Improving existing structure of team communication became critical as we implemented tests of change. Next steps for this project include utilizing the weekly MSAS data available on all patients to study those symptoms experienced specifically by children undergoing stem cell transplant. We will continue to work with our hospital information technology staff to further develop sustainability via process changes in the EMR. In addition we will expand our symptom assessment to include all outpatient consults. Finally, as we have standardized, reliable method to measure symptoms for all inpatients, we intend to design interventions targeting improving symptom management and health-related quality of life in children receiving palliative care in our institution.
Mark M S; McKenna L; Thienprayoon R
Pediatrics
2018
Article information provided for research and reference use only. PedPalASCNET does not hold any rights over the resource listed here. All rights are retained by the journal listed under publisher and/or the creator(s).
Research-Embedded Health Librarians as Facilitators of a Multidisciplinary Scoping Review
Pediatric palliative care; bibliographic software; citation screening; clinical team; data capture; embedded librarian; information technology; review tools; scoping review; workflow management
2017-08
Brander G; Pawliuk C
Journal Of The Canadian Health Libraries Association
2017
Article information provided for research and reference use only. PedPalASCNET does not hold any rights over the resource listed here. All rights are retained by the journal listed under publisher and/or the creator(s).
Journal Article
Timing of Pediatric Palliative Care Consults in Hospitalized Patients with Heart Disease
intensive care unit; Palliative Care; child; article; female; human; major clinical study; male; newborn; retrospective study; advance care planning; palliative therapy; medical decision making; pediatrics; artificial ventilation; terminal care; hospitalization; information technology; hospital patient; patient referral; life sustaining treatment; congenital heart disease; consultation; mortality; pulmonary hypertension; infant; hospitalized child; length of stay; pediatric patient; extracorporeal oxygenation; disease course; cardiomyopathy; heart disease; catheterization; myocarditis; myopericarditis; pericarditis
Pediatric palliative care (PPC) provides an extra layer of support for families caring for a child with complex heart disease as these patients often experience lifelong morbidities with frequent hospitalizations and risk of early mortality. PPC referral at the time of heart disease diagnosis provides early involvement in the disease trajectory, allowing PPC teams to longitudinally support patients and families with symptom management, complex medical decision-making, and advanced care planning. We analyzed 113 hospitalized pediatric patients with a primary diagnosis of heart disease and a PPC consult to identify timing of first PPC consultation in relation to diagnosis, complex chronic conditions (CCC), and death. The median age of heart disease diagnosis was 0 days with a median of two CCCs while PPC consultation did not occur until a median age of 77 days with a median of four CCCs. Median time between PPC consult and death was 33 days (interquartile range: 7-128). Death often occurred in the intensive care unit (n = 36, 67%), and the most common mode was withdrawal of life-sustaining therapies (n = 31, 57%). PPC referral often occurred in the context of medical complexity and prolonged hospitalization. Referral close to the time of heart disease diagnosis would allow patients and families to fully utilize PPC benefits that exist outside of end-of-life care and may influence the mode and location of death. PPC consultation should be considered at the time of heart disease diagnosis, especially in neonates and infants with CCCs.Copyright © 2023 Georg Thieme Verlag. All rights reserved.
Green DJ; Bennett E; Olson LM; Wawrzynski S; Bodily S; Moore D; Mansfield KJ; Wilkins V; Cook L; Delgado-Corcoran C
Journal of Pediatric Intensive Care
2023
Article information provided for research and reference use only. PedPalASCNET does not hold any rights over the resource listed here. All rights are retained by the journal listed under publisher and/or the creator(s).
<a href="http://doi.org/10.1055/s-0041-1730916" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">10.1055/s-0041-1730916</a>