The impact of pre-existing chronic heart failure on the intensive care treatment and outcome of old intensive care patients suffering from COVID-19

Background: Patients suffering from COVID-19 with pre-existing chronic heart failure (CHF) are considered to have a significant risk regarding morbidity and mortality. Similarly, older patients on the intensive care unit (ICU) constitute another vulnerable subgroup. This study investigated the association between pre-existing CHF and clinical practice in critically ill older ICU patients with COVID-19. Method(s): Patients with severe COVID-19 and who were >=70 years old were recruited from this prospective multicenter international study. Patients' treatment, follow-up, and pre-existing heart failure data were collected during ICU stay. Univariate and multivariate logistic regression analyses examined the association between pre-existing heart failure and the primary endpoint of 30-day mortality. Result(s): The study included 3,917 patients, with 407 patients (17%) evidencing pre-existing CHF. These patients were older (77+/-5 versus 76+/-5, p<0.001) and more frail (Clinical Frailty Scale 4+/-2 versus 3+/-2, p<0.0001). The other comorbidities were also significantly more common in CHF patients. Before hospital admission, CHF patients suffered fewer days from symptoms (5 days (3-8) versus 7 days (4-10), p<0.001), but there was no difference in the days in the hospital before ICU admission (2 days (1-5) versus 2 (1-5) days, p=0.21). At ICU admission, disease severity assessed by SOFA scores was significantly higher in CHF patients (7+/-3 versus 5+/-3). During ICU-stay, intubation, mechanical ventilation, and tracheostomy occurred significantly more often in patients without CHF (63% versus 69%, p=0.017;and 13% versus 18%, p=0.002, respectively). In contrast, there was no difference regarding non-invasive ventilation (28% versus 27%, p=0.20), and the need for vasoactive drugs (66% versus 64, p=0.30). Regarding the limitation of life-sustaining therapy, therapy was significantly more often withheld (32% versus 25%, p=0.001) but not withdrawn (18% versus 17%, p=0.21) in CHF patients. Length of ICU stay was significantly shorter in CHF patients (166 (72-336) hours versus 260 hours (120-528), p<0.001). CHF patients had significantly higher ICU-(52% versus 46%, p=0.007), 30-day mortality (60% vs. 48%, p<0.001;OR 1.87, 95% CI 1.5- 2.3) and 3-month mortality (69% vs. 56%, p<0.001). In the univariate regression analysis, having pre-existing CHF was significantly associated with 30-day mortality (OR 1.89, 95% CI 1.5-2.3;p<0.001), but after adjusting for confounders (SOFA, age, gender, frailty), heart failure was not independently associated any more (aOR 1.2, 95% CI 0.5-1.5;p=0.137). Conclusion(s): In critically ill old COVID-19 patients, pre-existing chronic heart failure is associated with significantly increased short-and long-term mortality, but heart failure is not independently associated with increased 30-day mortality when adjusted for confounders.

Limitation of life-sustaining treatment and patient involvement in decision-making: a retrospective study of a Danish COVID-19 patient cohort.

BACKGROUND: The coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic and the risk of an extensive overload of the healthcare systems have elucidated the need to make decisions on the level of life-sustaining treatment for patients requiring hospitalisation. The purpose of the study was to investigate the proportion and characteristics of COVID-19 patients with limitation of life-sustaining treatment decisions and the degree of patient involvement in the decisions. METHODS: A retrospective observational descriptive study was conducted in three Danish regional hospitals, looking at all patients ≥ 18 years of age admitted in 2020 with COVID-19 as the primary diagnosis. Lists of hospitalised patients admitted due to COVID-19 were extracted. The data registration included age, gender, comorbidities, including mental state, body mass index, frailty, recent hospital admissions, COVID-19 life-sustaining treatment, ICU admission, decisions on limitations of life-sustaining treatment before and during current hospitalisation, hospital length of stay, and hospital mortality. RESULTS: A total of 476 patients were included. For 7% (33/476), a decision about limitation of life-sustaining treatment had been made prior to hospital admission. At the time of admission, one or more limitations of life-sustaining treatment were registered for 16% (75/476) of patients. During the admission, limitation decisions were made for an additional 11 patients, totaling 18% (86/476). For 40% (34/86), the decisions were either made by or discussed with the patient. The decisions not made by patients were made by physicians. For 36% (31/86), no information was disclosed about patient involvement. CONCLUSIONS: Life-sustaining treatment limitation decisions were made for 18% of a COVID-19 patient cohort. Hereof, more than a third of the decisions had been made before hospital admission. Many records lacked information on patient involvement in the decisions.

EFFECTIVENESS OF NURSING EDUCATION IN TIMELY ORGAN REFERRAL: A SMALL INTERVENTION, AN IMPRESSIVE OUTCOME

SESSION TITLE: Quality Improvement SESSION TYPE: Original Investigations PRESENTED ON: 10/17/22 1:30 pm - 2:30 pm PURPOSE: Organ transplant is the ultimate necessity in managing many end-stage organ pathologies. As per the health resource and service administration, 17 people die every day while waiting for an organ transplant. In the year 2020, 169 million Americans registered as organ donors, but due to the limitations of organ donation such as cause of death and condition of the organ at the time of death, only about 3 in 1000 people die in such a way that their organs are in an optimum condition for transplantation 1. The role of nurses in organ donation is critical in both acute and critical care settings 2. Educating nurses on certain aspects of organ donation, such as approaching the families and counseling regarding moral and legal considerations, will acclererate the process of organs retrieval from the interested donors. We hypothesized that in addition to Best Practice Alert (BPA) on Electronic Medical Record (EMR), educating nurses can optimize organ donation by timely referring the organs for transplantation. METHODS: ICU-wide nursing education sessions were conducted elucidating that when a ventilated patient qualifies for Life Gift notification and a BPA does not pop up in EMR, Nurses should immediately call the Houston Methodist organ donation service, Life Gift within one hour of the following two triggers: 1) Loss of one or more brainstem reflex(es), 2) Glasgow Coma Scale (GCS) ≤ 5. Nurses were also educated to start a timely discussion with the family proposing Life Gift prior to discussing the withdrawal of life-sustaining treatments, popularly known as terminal extubation. The data for timely organ referral from the preceding six months (January 2021 to June 2021) was compared to the four months (July 2021 to October 2021) following the nursing education sessions. RESULTS: The total number of timely referrals in the pre- and post-education period were n=23/33 Vs. n=29/31. The overall timely referral of the organ for transplantation increased from 69.2% to 95%. Out of four months post-education, two months record the compliance of 100%. Our chi-square statistic was 5.969 with a p-value of 0.01456. We performed Yates continuity correction due to small sample size and to compensate for deviations from the theoretical (smooth) probability distribution. Our chi-square statistic with Yates correction was 4.506, and the p-value was 0.034 (Significant at p < 0.05). Our study was limited by the small sample size, high nursing turnover due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and logistic restrictions due to the pandemic. CONCLUSIONS: The overall referring time for organs improved after nursing education sessions, including targeted triggers. CLINICAL IMPLICATIONS: Nursing education plays a crucial role in organ donation programs. Further studies are needed to better understand the issues that nurses face and develop new strategies that can be implemented to improve the organ and tissue referrals for organ donation. DISCLOSURES: No relevant relationships by Muhammad Mohsin Abid No relevant relationships by Sana Jogezai No relevant relationships by Iqbal Ratnani No relevant relationships by Salim Surani No relevant relationships by Muhammad Hassan Virk

Does Frequency of in-Person Clinic Evaluation Impact Central Line-Associated Bloodstream Infections in Pediatric Home Parenteral Nutrition Patients

Background: Home parenteral nutrition (HPN) is the primary treatment for patients with pediatric intestinal failure. It is a complex, life-sustaining therapy requiring a central venous catheter (CVC), and carries high morbidity. Central line-associated bloodstream infection (CLABSI) is a common and potentially fatal complication of HPN. Patients on HPN require a skilled multi-disciplinary team- including physicians, nurses, dietitians and pharmacists-to prevent HPN related complications, provide safe and individualized nutrition support that is evaluated on a regular basis in the ambulatory setting. In-person visits in the clinic setting allow for HPN patients to be evaluated by all disciplines, and full assessment of weight and general condition, fluid status and laboratory values. Importantly, clinic evaluations also allow for close examination of central venous catheter (CVC), discussion with caregivers to identify potential infection risks, and opportunities for education to prevent infections and other complications. Program standard of care is bimonthly clinic and laboratory evaluation, more frequently if clinically indicated. The COVID-19 crisis required transition of many of these evaluations from in-person to telemedicine, which has created new challenges in caring for high-risk pediatric HPN patients and prevention of CLABSI. Multi-disciplinary telemedicine visits including nursing, dietitians and physicians were substituted for in-person evaluations at first exclusively at onset of pandemic, then to every other visit as COVID rates improved and vaccinations became more available. Method(s): HPN clinic encounters from 2019-present were reviewed in a large pediatric HPN program and compared to CLABSI rates. Attention was paid to in-person versus telemedicine evaluations in the setting of COVID-19 pandemic. CLABSI rate was defined as # of ambulatory infections/1000 catheter days, as defined by National Healthcare Safety Network (NHSN) guidelines. Result(s): Despite decreased frequency of in-person clinic evaluation, ambulatory CLABSI rates did not increase during this time. In fact, median CLABSI rate from 2020 to present decreased from 0.81/1000 catheter days to 0.5/1000 catheter days. In 2020, there was a mild trend toward increased CLABSI rate in patients who had higher percentage of telemedicine versus in-person encounters;however, this was not statistically significant. This trend was not observed in 2021. Conclusion(s): Pediatric patients receiving HPN are high-risk and require evaluation by a multidisciplinary team at regular intervals to maintain safety. COVID-19 pandemic interrupted ability to see these complex patients for in-person evaluation with regular frequency;therefore multidisciplinary telemedicine visits were substituted. While in-person evaluation remains the gold standard for management of patients on HPN, intermittent use of multi-disciplinary telemedicine encounters can be utilized to safely care for pediatric HPN patients, without resultant (Figure Presented).

A NOVEL PROGNOSTIC MODEL INCLUDING LIVER FUNCTION PARAMETERS ACCURATELY PREDICTS 30-DAY MORTALITY IN PATIENTS ADMITTED WITH COVID-19

Background and Aims: While the relationship between elevated liver enzymes and COVID- 19 related adverse events is well-established, a liver-dependent prognostic model that predicts the risk of death is helpful to accurately stratify admitted patients. In this study, we use a bootstrapping-enhanced method of regression modeling to predict COVID-19 related deaths in admitted patients. Method: This was a single-center, retrospective study. Univariate and multivariate Cox regression analyses were performed using 30-day mortality as the primary endpoint to establish associated hepatic risk factors. Regression-based prediction models were constructed using a series of modeling iterations with an escalating number of categorical terms. Model performance was evaluated using receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves. Model accuracy was internally validated using bootstrapping-enhanced iterations. Results: 858 patients admitted to hospital with COVID-19 were included. 78 were deceased by 30 days (9.09%). Cox regression (greater than 20 variables) showed the following core variables to be significant: INR (aHR 1.26 95%CI 1.06-1.49), AST (aHR 1.00 95%CI 1.00- 1.00), age (aHR 1.05 95%CI 1.02-1.08), WBC (aHR 1.07 95%CI 1.03-1.11), lung cancer (aHR 3.38 95%CI 1.15-9.90), COPD (aHR 2.26 95%CI 1.21-4.22). Using these core variables and additional categorical terms, the following model iterations were constructed with their respective AUC;model 1 (core only): 0.82 95%CI 0.776-0.82, model 2 (core + demographics): 0.828 95%CI 0.785-0.828, model 3 (prior terms + additional biomarkers): 0.842 95%CI 0.799-0.842, model 4 (prior terms + comorbidities): 0.851 95%CI 0.809-0.851, model 5 (prior terms + life-sustaining therapies): 0.933 95%CI 0.91-0.933, model 6 (prior terms + COVID-19 medications): 0.934 95%CI 0.91-0.934. Model 1 demonstrated the following parameters at 0.91 TPR: 0.54 specificity, 0.17 PPV, 0.98 NPV. Bootstrapped iterations showed the following AUC for the respective models: model 1: 0.82 95%CI 0.765-0.882, model 2 0.828 95%CI 0.764-0.885, model 3 0.842 95%CI 0.779-0.883, model 4: 0.851 95%CI 0.808-0.914, model 5: 0.933 95%CI 0.901-0.957, model 6: 0.934 95%CI 0.901- 0.961. Conclusion: Model 1 displays high prediction performance (AUC >0.8) in both regression-based and bootstrapping-enhanced modeling iterations. Therefore, this model can be adopted for clinical use as a calculator to evaluate the risk of 30-day mortality in patients admitted with COVID-19. (Table Presented)

A Short Intervention and an Interactive e-Learning Module to Motivate Medical and Dental Students to Enlist as First Responders: Implementation Study

Background: Prompt and proficient basic life support (BLS) maneuvers are essential to increasing the odds of survival after out-of-hospital cardiac arrest. However, significant time can elapse before the arrival of professional rescuers. To decrease these delays, many countries have developed first responder networks. These networks are composed of BLS-certified lay or professional rescuers who can be dispatched by emergency medical communication centers to take care of those who experience out-of-hospital cardiac arrest. Many systems are, however, limited by a relatively low number of active first responders, and first-year medical and dental students may represent an almost untapped pool of potential rescuers. On top of providing an enhanced BLS coverage to the population, this could also help medical students be better prepared to their future role as certified health care providers and address societal expectations regarding health care students. Objective: Our objective was to describe the impact of a short motivational intervention followed by a blended BLS course (e-learning and practice session) designed to motivate first-year medical and dental students to enlist as first responders. Methods: A short, web-based, motivational intervention presenting this project took place, and first-year University of Geneva, Faculty of Medicine students were provided with a link to the study platform. Those who agreed to participate were redirected to a demographic questionnaire before registering on the platform. The participants were then asked to answer a second questionnaire designed to determine their baseline knowledge prior to following an interactive e-learning module. Upon completion, a web-based booking form enabling them to register for a 1-hour practice session was displayed. These sessions were held by senior medical students who had been trained and certified as BLS instructors. The participants who attended these practice sessions were asked to answer a postcourse questionnaire before receiving the certificate enabling them to register as first responders. Results: Out of the 529 first-year students registered at University of Geneva, Faculty of Medicine on January 14, 2021, 190 (35.9%) initially agreed to participate. Moreover, 102 (19.3%) attended the practice sessions, and 48 (9.1%) had completed all training and enlisted as first responders on the dedicated platform, Save a Life, at 6 months (July 14, 2021). Postcourse confidence in resuscitation skills was associated with a higher likelihood of registering as first responder (P=.03). No association was found between prior BLS knowledge and the probability of registering to a practice session (P=.59), of obtaining a course completion certificate (P=.29), or of enlisting as first responder (P=.56). Conclusions: This study shows that a motivational intervention associated with a short BLS course can convince medical students to enlist as first responders. Further studies are needed to understand the rather low proportion of medical students finally registering as first responders. International Registered Report Identifier (IRRID): RR2-10.2196/24664

Operation of a triage committee for advanced life support during the COVID-19 pandemic

Background: During the first weeks of March 2020 in Spain, the cases of severe respiratory failure progressively increased, generating an imbalance between the clinical needs for advanced life support (ALS) measures and the effective availability of ALS resources. To address this problem, the creation of triage committees (TC) was proposed, whose main function is to select the best candidates to receive ALS. The main objective of our study is to describe the clinical characteristics of the patients evaluated by the TC of the Alcorcon Foundation University Hospital (AFUH) during the first wave of SARS CoV-2. Other objectives are to determine if there are differences between the patients considered candidates / not candidates for ALS and to analyze the functioning of the TC. Methods: Retrospective observational study of all patients assessed by the AFUH TC. Results: There were 19 meetings, in which 181 patients were evaluated, 65.4% male and with a mean age of 70.1 years. 31% had some degree of functional dependence, the Barthel median was 100 and Charlson 4. 58.5% were not considered a candidate for ALS at that time. The patients considered candidates to receive ALS were younger (72 vs 66;p < 0.001), had less comorbidity (Charlson 4 vs 3;p < 0.001) and had a better previous functional situation. A median of 5 physicians participated in each meeting and, after being assessed by the TC, 13.6% received ALS: 29.3% of those considered candidates for ALS and 2% of the non-candidates. Conclusions: The patients evaluated by the TC had a mean age of 70 years, high comorbidity and almost a third had some degree of functional dependence. More than half were not considered candidates for ALS at that time, these patients being older, with more comorbidity and a worse previous functional situation. TC decisions, based on objective clinical criteria, were almost always respected. Public institutions must get involved in triage procedures, which should and in our opinion must include the creation of TC in health centers. The implementation of Anticipated Decision programs (ADP) would help enable patients affected by triage decisions to participate in them. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved)

POS-696 THE DIFFICULT COVID PANDEMIC JOURNEY TO PERITONEAL DIALYSIS IN PORT HARCOURT, NIGERIA: A SISTERS RENAL CENTRE ISN COLLABORATION

Introduction: The ISN Sisters Renal Centre collaboration between University of Port Harcourt Teaching Hospital, Nigeria and Salford Royal NHS FT aims to establish PD in Port Harcourt CKD is a significant health issue in Nigeria. Treatment of ESRD is beyond the financial means of most people, exacerbating health inequalities. Intermittent HD with temporary central vascular access is the norm. Problems are exacerbated by technical issues with dialysis machines and water treatment PD offers more affordable life sustaining treatment, less dependence on technical infrastructure and multiple venous punctures for access Methods: Previous collaboration has included videoconferencing, visits to the UK by a Nigerian physician and clinical and academic links Visiting clinicians from the UK 2019 participated in a project of point of care testing of creatinine in acute kidney injury with a multidisciplinary workshop, designing the algorithm for the subsequent testing. Didactic and practical skills training for HD and PD access. Long term tunnelled HD access was established for the first time locally The major objective of establishing PD was not possible–no fluid available in the country and international commercial suppliers without reliable supply chain Coinciding with the Covid pandemic a commercial suppler began producing PD fluid in Nigeria Despite enthusiasm for hands on collaboration further visits to establish physician inserted PD catheter access were cancelled An alternative programme of collaboration at distance was established Results: Regular monthly planning Zoom meetings maintained contact between clinicians Recognising that PD is nurse delivered and will not be successful without MDT working, alliances were formed by the respective nursing teams Zoom teaching helped established working relationships with the anticipation of offering real time support and troubleshooting once PD is established The nursing team in Salford produced video teaching of PD exchanges to produce a teaching aid available on the group YouTube channel Relatively low-tech use of available equipment, including a head mount for mobile phones to allow operator eye view of procedures via the phone camera have helped with real time teaching of dialysis access and point of care ultrasound for junior and senior clinicians The proposed commencement of PD recognises local issues: housing, water supply and sanitation pose major difficulties in the standard model of patient delivered home PD The new commercially available PD fluid is potentially more affordable than intermittent HD, but not if utilised in traditional standard pattern of 4 CAPD exchanges daily. Local practice in the UK unit has changed in keeping with recent ISPD guidelines towards incremental, patient specific dialysis prescription. The new PD project in Port Harcourt is being designed around patient reported outcomes and technique tolerability in keeping with modern best practice Conclusions: The huge challenge of the covid pandemic for practising clinicians maintaining collaboration needs to be recognised. Continued enthusiasm across the MDT and innovative ways of delivering training means this ISN project is well placed to deliver major improvements in care in Nigeria with a high quality patient centred PD programme The hope is to narrow the huge health inequalities which have been exacerbated by the Covid pandemic No conflict of interest

Addressing end-of-life care in the chronically ill: Conversations in the emergency department.

Patients present to the emergency department in various stages of chronic illness. Advance directives (ADs) aid emergency physicians in making treatment decisions, but only a minority of Americans have completed an AD, and the percentage of those who have discussed their end-of-life wishes may be even lower. This article addresses the use of common ADs and roadblocks to their use from the perspectives of families, patients, and physicians. Cases to examine new approaches to optimizing end-of-life conversations in patients who are chronically ill, such as the Improving Palliative Care in Emergency Medicine Project, a decision-making framework that opens discussion for patients to gain understanding and determine preferences, and the Brief Negotiated Interview, a 7-minute, scripted, motivational interview that determines willingness for behavior change and initiates care planning, are used.

Reasons for physician-related variability in end-of-life decision-making in intensive care.

BACKGROUND: There is increasing evidence that the individual physician is the main factor influencing variability in end-of-life decision-making in intensive care units. End-of-life decisions are complex and should be adapted to each patient. Physician-related variability is problematic as it may result in unequal assessments that affect patient outcomes. The primary aim of this study was to investigate factors contributing to physician-related variability in end-of-life decision-making. METHOD: This is a qualitative substudy of a previously conducted study. In-depth thematic analysis of semistructured interviews with 19 critical care specialists from five different Swedish intensive care units was performed. Interviews took place between 1 February 2017 and 31 May 2017. RESULTS: Factors influencing physician-related variability consisted of different assessment of patient preferences, as well as intensivists' personality and values. Personality was expressed mainly through pace and determination in the decision-making process. Personal prejudices appeared in decisions, but few respondents had personally witnessed this. Avoidance of criticism and conflicts as well as individual strategies for emotional coping were other factors that influenced physician-related variability. Many respondents feared criticism for making their assessments, and the challenging nature of end-of-life decision-making lead to avoidance as well as emotional stress. CONCLUSION: Variability in end-of-life decision-making is an important topic that needs further investigation. It is imperative that such variability be acknowledged and addressed in a more formal and transparent manner. The ethical issues faced by intensivists have recently been compounded by the devastating impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, demonstrating in profound terms the importance of the topic.

Chronic and Sudden Serious Illness, COVID-19, and Decision-Making Capacity: Integrating Advance Care Planning Into the Preoperative Checklist for Elective Surgery.

Advance Care Planning (ACP) includes anticipating future medical decisions and designating a medical decision maker in the event of losing the capacity to make one's own medical decisions. Many advantages can be seen to doing ACP before a crisis as well as revisiting these discussions over time as circumstances change. This case presentation is of a 74-year-old woman with multiple medical problems who had ACP discussions in the context of proposed surgery for colon cancer. These conversations highlight the elements of high-quality ACP and the importance of learning what patients mean when they employ phrases commonly referenced in these conversations. The planned surgery was delayed by the COVID-19 pandemic but the discussions helped to guide decision-making when the patient became critically ill with COVID-19.

Stay-at-Home Orders and the Common Good.

COVID-19, also known as SARS-CoV-2, began in Wuhan, China, late November or early December, 2019 and has since spread rapidly throughout the globe, being declared a health emergency of international concern a month later and a pandemic on March 11, 2020. It is highly contagious with a death rate up to twelve times that of the flu, even higher where the healthcare systems have been strained. To reduce the spread, states have implemented stay-at-home declarations, limiting social gatherings, and closing churches. However, some have argued that churches are an "essential service" and should be reopened in order that the faithful to be able to receive the sacraments, in particular the Eucharist. I will argue that this goes against the Catholic doctrine of the common good and care for the poor and vulnerable. Summary: COVID-19 has caused a pandemic strained health care resources. In response, the US instituted stay-at-home orders which included the closing of places of worship. Within reason, this falls under the Catholic doctrine of the common good and caring for the poor and vulnerable.