International Emergency Nursing最新文献

Background

Emergency triage, which involves complex decision-making under stress and time constraints, may suffer from inaccuracies due to workplace distractions. A serious game was developed to simulate the triage process and environment. A pilot study was undertaken to collect preliminary data on the effects of distractors on emergency nurse triage accuracy.

Method

A 2 × 2 factorial randomized controlled trial (RCT) was designed for the study. A sample of 70 emergency room nurses was randomly assigned to three experimental groups exposed to different distractors (noise, task interruptions, and both) and one control group. Nurses had two hours to complete a series of 20 clinical vignettes, in which they had to establish a chief complaint and assign an emergency level.

Results

Fifty-five nurses completed approximately 15 vignettes each during the allotted time. No intergroup differences emerged in terms of triage performance. Nurses had a very favorable appreciation of the serious game focusing on triage.

Conclusion

The results show that both the structure of our study and the serious game can be used to carry out a future RCT on a larger scale. The lack of a distractor effect raises questions about the frequency and intensity required to find a significant impact on triage performance.

Background

Immobilization is an intervention widely administered to trauma victims and aims to reduce the victim’s movements, ensuring the alignment of anatomical structures suspected of being injured. Despite the benefits of immobilization, it is responsible for the occurrence of pressure injuries, increases in intercranial pressure, pain, and discomfort.

Aim

To develop an instrument to assess the discomfort caused by immobilization in trauma victims − Discomfort Assessment Scale for Immobilized Trauma Victims (DASITV).

Methods

A sequential mixed-methods design was used, divided into three distinct but complementary phases: (1) Conceptualization Phase − Construction of the DASITV; (2) Focus Group with a Panel of ten Technical Experts in the care of immobilized trauma victims to approve the DASITV proposal; (3) Acceptance of the scale proposal using a modified e-Delphi technique with 30 pre-hospital health professionals.

Results

The first phase led to the construction of a scale made up of two sub-scales. The Numerical Discomfort Scale assesses the level of discomfort the person reports from 0 to 10, with 0 being no discomfort and 10 being maximum discomfort. The second evaluation parameter gives the level of pressure in mmHg that the body exerts on the surface where it is immobilized. The combined interpretation of these two sub-scales leads to 4 different possibilities − ordered by level of severity. The Focus Group made it possible to improve the scale, with input from the group of experts and, using the modified e-Delphi technique, a wider group of professionals showed agreement with the DASITV.

Conclusion

This study allowed us to propose a preliminary scale to assess the discomfort felt by victims of trauma caused by immobilization.

Background

Emergency department (ED) crowding is a widespread issue with adverse effects on patient care and outcomes.

Local problem: ED crowding exacerbates wait times and compromises patient care, prompting opportunities for internal process improvement.

Method

Over one week, the ED flow project team implemented four interventions, including an additional triage station, to optimize patient flow. We compared triage times, length of stay, crowding levels, and patient experiences with two control periods.

Results

During peak hours, waiting times to triage decreased significantly with a median of 20 min (IQR 15–30) in the project week and 26 min (IQR 18–37) in the control weeks. Self-referrals decreased, while general practitioner referrals remained unchanged. Individual patient length of stay was unaffected, but crowding reduced notably during the project week. We found no difference in patient experiences between the periods.

Conclusion

The interventions contributed to reduced crowding and improved patient flow. The dedication of the ED flow project team and the ED nurses was crucial to these outcomes. An additional triage station during peak hours in the ED was established as a structural change.

Background

Abdominal pain is one of the most common complaints when patients are admitted to emergency departments (ED). Unfortunately, many of these patients are readmitted to the ED shortly after initial discharge. The perspectives of these patients have not yet been explored.

Purpose

The study aimed to explore how patients readmitted with acute abdominal pain in the ED experienced their initial admission, the time after discharge, and the cause of readmission.

Methods

The study had a qualitative explorative design with a phenomenological-hermeneutic approach. Semi-structured individual telephone interviews were conducted with 14 patients readmitted with acute abdominal pain.

Results

The analysis showed four themes: 1) being vulnerable during hospitalisation, 2) the meaning of information during hospitalisation, 3) discharged without being diagnosed, and 4) readmitted in the pursuit of relief. The patients wanted more knowledge and better communication despite their vulnerable condition. Patients were discharged whilst still in pain, and uncertainty of the situation at home contributed to mistrust of the health professionals.

Conclusion

Patients’ experience of the first ED admission due to acute abdominal pain was loneliness, minimal contact with healthcare professionals, and lack of information and involvement in pain management. Discharge was associated with feelings of insignificance and contributed to a fear of death. Pain was the main reason for readmission. Patients described how multiple readmissions contributed to being taken seriously by healthcare professionals.

Background

In pediatric emergency units, intramuscular injection is one of the most common procedures that cause pain and fear in children. Reducing pain and fear is important for patient comfort.

Objective

This randomized controlled experimental study aimed to determine the effects of ShotBlocker® and the Helfer skin tap technique on the pain and fear experienced by children aged 6–12 years during intramuscular injection in pediatric emergency units.

Methods

This study was conducted from April 2022 to October 2023 among 177 children aged 6–12 years. ShotBlocker and the Helfer skin tap technique were applied during intramuscular injection among children in the intervention groups (ShotBlocker group: n = 59, Helfer skin tap technique group: n = 59), while children in the control group received routine injections. (n = 59). The levels of pain and fear were measured.

Results

In the analysis of the age distribution of the children, the average age of the Helfer skin tap technique group was found to be 8.54 ± 2.00 years; ShotBlocker group, 8.46 ± 1.99 years; and control group, 9.19 ± 2.01 years. There was a significant difference in the post-intervention Wong–Baker Pain Scale and Child Fear Scale scores based on the evaluation of the children, parents, and observer nurses between the groups (p < 0.05). The pain and fear scores of the ShotBlocker group were lower than those of the control group (p < 0.05).

Conclusions

ShotBlocker is more effective in reducing pain than the Helfer skin tap technique among children receiving intramuscular injection. These cheap and easy-to-use methods are recommended for use in emergency units.

Background

Violence against healthcare workers is a pervasive, yet in many cases, under-reported problem. This is due to various factors, including lack of time, support and a universal understanding of what constitutes a reportable event. This study explored facilitators and barriers to reporting workplace violence among emergency department nurses.

Methods

In this descriptive, qualitative study, researchers conducted open-ended interviews with emergency nurses considered to be “high-” and “non-reporters” of violent events and analyzed for themes.

Results

Participants cited consistent factors associated with less reporting, factors associated with more reporting and effectiveness of existing safety measures.

Conclusions

To encourage the reporting of violent events, frequently cited barriers and facilitators should be addressed. Strategies such as integrating reporting mechanisms into the health record, creating nuanced definitions of reportable events, and consistent education with positive feedback can promote reporting by staff. These efforts should be combined with prevention strategies to ensure we are collecting correct data about the success or failure of these programs.

Objectives

To design and construct an assessment tool for the handover of critical patients in the urgent care and emergency setting.

Research methodology

This metric and descriptive study comprised two phases in accordance with the Clinical practice guidelines for A Reporting Tool for Adapted Guidelines in Health Care: The RIGHT-Ad@pt Checklist. In the first phase, the identification and selection of items related to the handover of critical patients were performed by consensus of a group of experts. The second phase consisted of two stages. In the first stage, the items were selected by applying the e-Delphi technique across two assessment rounds and in the second stage, the items were subjected a pilot test in a real critical patient handover scenario. Professionals from different disciplines and work areas (hospital and prehospital) caring for critically ill patients in the urgency and emergency setting participated in each of the phases.

Results

A total of 58 critical patient care, and urgent and emergency care professionals participated in the design and construction of the assessment tool. The initial list consisted of 14 categories and 57 items, which were reduced to 28 items grouped into five categories after the intervention of the participants. The content validity index (CVI) of the instrument was 0.966.

Conclusions

This study describes an assessment tool developed in Spanish-language designed to assess the handover of critical patients in the urgent care and emergency setting. This tool has a high CVI, and is the only currently available tool that consider all of the dimensions and characteristics of the handover process.

Implications for clinical practice

The assessment tool developed in this study could enable critical care professionals in their clinical practice to work in a systematic way, universalizing the handover of critically ill patients in the urgent care and emergency setting through scientifically proven guidelines.

Background

Australian literature supports nurse-initiated opioid analgesia protocols may be effective, but this practice is not yet widely adopted in Canada.

Local problem

Previous quality audits of Emergency Departments (EDs) in Victoria (Canada) indicate long delays to administration of analgesia.

Methods

Two tertiary care hospitals in a Canadian city of approximately 400,000 people were chosen for a quality improvement initiative. A manual retrospective chart review was conducted on a total of 122 patients which was compared to data from 125 patients from a previous audit in 2019.

Interventions

ED nursing staff both hospitals were provided education and daily reminders to document pain score at triage, and to flag an acute analgesia opioid order set on the charts of patients with moderate or severe pain (greater than 4 out of 10 in the Numerical Rating Scale (NRS) or by triage nurse’s clinical judgment). At Victoria General Hospital (VGH), nurses had the option of finding an emergency physician (EP) to sign the acute analgesia opioid order set, or independently administer IV opioids from a presigned order set without consulting an EP. At Royal Jubilee Hospital (RJH), nursing staff could only administer IV opioids from the order set after an EP was consulted. Median time to opioid analgesia after the intervention was compared to 2019 data for each hospital.

Results

Each hospital significantly reduced median time to administration of opioids: VGH achieved 45.6 % reduction (1 h 8 min improvement, p = 0.001) and RJH achieved a 62.5 % reduction (2 h 11 min improvement, p < 0.001). Secondary outcomes indicated patients may receive analgesia faster when the opioid protocol was nurse initiated (median 43 minutes) vs physician initiated (median 1 h 1 min) at VGH. Pain score documentation at triage improved from <10 % in 2019 to >50 % in 2020 at both sites. Approximately 95 % of EP and nursing staff thought nurse-initiated opioids are safe, effective, and should be supported by regulatory boards.

Conclusion

Implementing a new triage protocol to expedite initiation of an analgesic protocol was associated with significantly reduced time to analgesia for patients with moderate to severe pain. Time reductions may be greater with nurse-initiated analgesia before physician assessment.

Background

Workplace violence can threaten the physical and mental health of emergency nurses, increasing their mobility and burnout rates. However, little research has focused on how to mitigate the negative effects of workplace violence.

Objectives

To investigate the relationships among resilience scores, perceived organizational support, and workplace violence and to explore the mediating role of perceived organizational support in the relationship between resilience scores and workplace violence among emergency nurses.

Research design

A quantitative, cross-sectional study.

Methods

From June to July 2023, 466 valid questionnaires were collected via the WeChat app Credamo Seeing Numbers. Participants were assessed using the Connor-Davidson Resilience Scale, the Perceived Organizational Support Scale, and the Fear of Future Violence at Work Scale.

Ethical consideration

The study was approved by the Ethics Committee of Hunan Normal University (No. 2023-389).

Findings

The Connor-Davidson resilience scores of emergency nurses were negatively associated with workplace violence and positively associated with emergency nurses’ perceived organizational support. Emergency nurses’ perceived organizational support was negatively associated with workplace violence. Perceived organizational support moderated the relationship between Connor-Davidson resilience scores and workplace violence among emergency nurses to some extent.

Discussion

High levels of Connor-Davidson resilience scores can mitigate the negative effects of workplace violence. Perceived organizational support can increase with increasing levels of Connor-Davidson resilience scores. When nurses face workplace violence, support from the organization can, on the one hand, reduce the negative impacts of stress and, on the other hand, elicit positive emotions.

Conclusion

To mitigate the effects of workplace violence on emergency nurses, interventions aimed at both internal and external organizational conditions must be developed to establish a supportive environment that can increase emergency nurses’ Connor-Davidson resilience scores and sense of perceived organizational support, and decrease workplace violence.

Background

Older patients are more likely to be undertriaged as they often suffer from multiple diseases and complain of non-specific symptoms. Therefore, it is necessary to identify the characteristics of undertriaged older patients in emergency departments.

Methods

This descriptive study retrospectively reviewed and analyzed the electronic medical records of older patients who visited the emergency department of a general hospital in Seoul between January and December 2019.

Results

Approximately 29 % (n = 4,823) of older patients who visited the emergency department during the study period were classified as Korean Triage and Acuity Scale (KTAS) level 4 or 5, and approximately 8 % (n = 397) were undertriaged. Approximately 73 % (n = 288) of patients were hospitalized after visiting the emergency department. The undertriaged older patients exhibited nervous system symptoms such as dizziness and headache (28.8 %), cardiopulmonary symptoms such as chest discomfort, palpitations, and abdominal pain (28.4 %), head trauma (12.8 %), and respiratory symptoms such as cough and dyspnea (12.5 %).

Conclusion

Triage nurses in emergency departments should carefully triage older patients as their chief complaints can be non-specific. In particular, when older patients visit the emergency department and exhibit symptoms such as dizziness, abnormal pain, chest discomfort, palpitations, and head trauma, they are more likely to be admitted to the intensive care unit. Therefore, meticulous care for older patients showing these symptoms is essential.