Articles: checklist.
-
Using a decision-making and treatment checklist developed to facilitate the at-home palliative sedation process, we assessed the incidence and efficacy of palliative sedation for end-of-life cancer patients with intractable symptoms who died at home. We retrospectively reviewed the medical records of 370 patients who were followed by a palliative home care team. Twenty-nine of 245 patients (12%) who died at home had received palliative sedation. ⋯ The mean time between palliative sedation initiation and time of death was 2.6 days. In 13 of the cases (45%), the palliative sedation decision was made with the patient and his or her family members, and in another 13 patients (45%), the palliative sedation decision was made only with the patient's family members. We concluded that palliative sedation may be used safely and efficaciously to treat dying cancer patients with refractory symptoms at home.
-
World journal of surgery · Jul 2010
Assessing operative performance in advanced laparoscopic colorectal surgery.
Competent technical skills performance in complex operations is vital for satisfactory patient outcome. Assessing these skills is therefore of paramount importance. In this study we aim to develop and validate a new tool that can assess both generic and specific technical skills in advanced complex laparoscopic colorectal surgery in the operating room. ⋯ This new assessment tool of generic and specific technical skills in advanced laparoscopic colorectal surgery is reliable and has face, content, concurrent, and construct validities. The tool has the possibility of being used as a surgical training and appraisal tool.
-
The purpose of this study was to implement a multidisciplinary daily quality checklist in a trauma intensive care setting to determine adherence to infection prevention protocols as well as the impact on infection and complications. ⋯ Initiation of a multidisciplinary daily quality checklist is correlated with decreased infection rates in a trauma intensive care setting.
-
Increased emphasis on patient safety in hospitals worldwide has become a critical goal for health care facilities and providers over the past decade. Resident work hour restrictions, handwashing efforts, medication reconciliation, procedural pauses, and a variety of improved communication mechanisms among all providers have been instituted. ⋯ The concept was to develop a tool to maintain and improve patient safety in the operating rooms that would be both effective and practical. The authors report on their 8-year experience with this tool and review the literature concerning surgical checklists.