Implementation of a nurse-led paediatric epistaxis clinic at a tertiary hospital

Introduction

Referrals for recurrent epistaxis constitute a significant proportion of paediatric ENT consultations. In order to improve access to secondary care, a nurse-led paediatric epistaxis clinic (NPEC) was developed in collaboration with ENT specialist nurses. The purpose of this study was to describe the structure of NPEC at our institution and to assess the impact including safety, parental satisfaction and referral-to-clinic times.

Methods

ENT specialist nurses were trained by an ENT Consultant through teaching sessions and clinic observations. Standard operating procedure was developed, and competencies were granted before commencement of NPEC. Service evaluation was done to assess the impact of NPEC including safety, parental satisfaction and referral-to-clinic times. All patients who attended NPEC from March 2022–February 2023 were included. Parental satisfaction questionnaires completed at the end of the clinic visit were prospectively collected for first 25 consecutive patients. Patient chart review was performed to assess for complications, need for consultant reviews and waiting times.

Results

Forty-seven patients attended NPEC during the study period (77 clinic visits). Median age was 10 years (range 3–16 years). Management included antibiotic ointment (25/77), silver nitrate cautery (28/77) and 3 were listed for nasal cautery under general anaesthesia. Among cases which underwent silver nitrate cautery, there was one minor complication reported. Consultant review was required in 18 clinic visits (23.3 %), including 5 patients requiring fiberoptic nasal endoscopy. Over the study period, median referral-to-clinic time for new patients was 77 days, compared to 229 days for consultant clinic (p = 0.003, Wilcoxon rank sum test). Overall quality of care in NPEC was described as "very satisfactory" and “fairly satisfactory” by 92 % and 8 % parents respectively.

Conclusion

Nurse led paediatric epistaxis clinics are safe and is associated with high parental satisfaction. Critical to success of NPEC is appropriate patient selection, training and availability of clinician support. These clinics offer a sustainable option to improve access to secondary care for paediatric epistaxis patients.