Cricothyrotomy in Acute Upper Gastrointestinal Bleed: A Difficult Airway Simulation Case for Anesthesiology Residents.

Introduction: Patients with acute upper gastrointestinal bleeding may have challenging airways. This simulation teaches anesthesiology residents the skill of cricothyrotomy as a surgical last resort while managing acute bleeding in the airway. Methods: The simulation involved a 55-year-old patient with history of alcohol abuse admitted to the ICU with hematemesis and acute blood loss for esophagogastroduodenoscopy in the ICU setting. The mannequin had tubing in the posterior oropharynx connected to a pressurized bag of simulated blood hidden from view. While conversing, the patient began to cough and gag, and the bag of fluid was opened, filling the posterior oropharynx with blood, which prompted immediate intubation attempts, designed to fail no matter what the learners attempted. When residents requested a surgical airway, they were provided with a cricothyrotomy kit and a task trainer to perform the procedure. Residents were evaluated using a behavior checklist, debriefed, then asked to complete a postsimulation survey. Results: Fifty-eight anesthesiology residents completed the simulation and provided feedback via a 5-point Likert scale of agreement. Most residents quickly recognized the need for emergency intubation. Eighty-eight percent of participants strongly agreed that the simulation was a valuable learning experience, with 99% stating it increased their confidence and clinical decision-making in handling similar scenarios in the future. Discussion: This simulation provides a chance to practice valuable airway management skills that increase resident confidence in cricothyrotomy. Future work may examine if these skills and confidence levels are sustainable over time and if they are applied in future patient encounters.

Intraoperative Accidental Extubation during Thyroidectomy in a Known Difficult-Airway Patient: An Adult Simulation Case for Anesthesiology Residents.

Intraoperative accidental extubation on a known difficult-airway patient requires prompt attention. A good understanding of the steps to re-establish the airway is critical, especially when the patient is known to have a difficult airway documented or discovered on induction or acquires a difficult airway secondary to intraoperative events. The situation becomes even more complicated if the case has been handed off to another anesthesiologist, where specific and detailed information may not have been conveyed. This simulation was designed to train first-year clinical anesthesia residents. It was a 50 min encounter that focused on the management of complete loss of an airway during a thyroidectomy on a known difficult-airway patient. The endotracheal tube dislodgement was simulated by deliberate tube manipulation through the cervical access window of the mannequin. Learners received a formative assessment of their performance during the debrief, and most of the residents met the educational objectives. Learners were asked to complete a survey of their experience, and the feedback was positive and constructive. The response rate was 68% (17/25). Our simulation program helped anesthesiology residents develop intraoperative emergency airway management skills in a safe environment, as well as foster communication skills among anesthesiologists and the surgery team.

Intraoperative Tension Pneumothorax in a Trauma Patient: An Adult Simulation Case for Anesthesia Residents.

Anesthesiologists may encounter multiple obstacles in communication when attempting to collect information for emergency surgeries. Occult tension pneumothorax that was asymptomatic in the emergency department (ED) could become apparent upon positive pressure ventilation and pose a critical threat to the patient intraoperatively. Here, we describe a simulation exercise that was developed as a curriculum module for the Indiana University (IU) Anesthesiology residency program. It is primarily designed for first-year clinical anesthesia residents (CA-1/PGY-2). It is a 50 min encounter with two scenarios. The first scenario focuses on information collection and communication with a non-cooperative patient with multiple distractors. The second scenario focuses on the early diagnosis of tension pneumothorax and subsequent treatment. The residents were given formative feedback and met the educational objectives. Commonly missed critical actions included misdiagnosing the tension pneumothorax as mainstem intubation, bronchospasm, pulmonary thromboembolism, and anaphylaxis. Residents rated the feedback and debriefing as "extremely useful" or "very useful." Time constraints limit the number of residents who can sit in the "hot seat." The structure of the mannequin limits the ability to diagnose pneumothorax by auscultation and ultrasound. In the future, the scenarios may also be utilized to educate student anesthesiologist assistants and other non-physician anesthesia learners.

Development of a simulation technical competence curriculum for medical simulation fellows.

BACKGROUND AND NEEDS: Medical educators with simulation fellowship training have a unique skill set. Simulation fellowship graduates have the ability to handle basic and common troubleshooting issues with simulation software, hardware, and equipment setup. Outside of formal training programs such as this, simulation skills are inconsistently taught and organically learned. This is important to address because there are high expectations of medical educators who complete simulation fellowships. To fill the gap, we offer one way of teaching and assessing simulation technical skills within a fellowship curriculum and reflect on lessons learned throughout the process. This report describes the instructional designs, implementation, and program evaluation of an educational intervention: a simulation technology curriculum for simulation fellows. CURRICULUM DESIGN: The current iteration of the simulation technical skill curriculum was introduced in 2018 and took approximately 8 months to develop under the guidance of expert simulation technology specialists, simulation fellowship-trained faculty, and simulation center administrators. Kern's six steps to curriculum development was used as the guiding conceptual framework. The curriculum was categorized into four domains, which emerged from the outcome of a qualitative needs assessment. Instructional sessions occurred on 5 days spanning a 2-week block. The final session concluded with summative testing. PROGRAM EVALUATION: Fellows were administered summative objective structured exams at three stations. The performance was rated by instructors using station-specific checklists. Scores approached 100% accuracy/completion for all stations. CONCLUSIONS: The development of an evidence-based educational intervention, a simulation technical skill curriculum, was highly regarded by participants and demonstrated effective training of the simulation fellows. This curriculum serves as a template for other simulationists to implement formal training in simulation technical skills.

Becoming an Agile Change Conductor.

Background: It takes decades and millions of dollars for a new scientific discovery to become part of clinical practice. In 2015, the Center for Health Innovation & Implementation Science (CHIIS) launched a Professional Certificate Program in Innovation and Implementation Sciences aimed at transforming healthcare professionals into Agile Change Conductors capable of designing, implementing, and diffusing evidence-based healthcare solutions. Method: In 2022, the authors surveyed alumni from the 2016-2021 cohorts of the Certificate Program as part of an educational quality improvement inquiry and to evaluate the effectiveness of the program. Results: Of the 60 alumni contacted, 52 completed the survey (87% response rate) with 60% of graduates being female while 30% were an under-represented minority. On a scale from 1 to 5, the graduates agreed that the certificate benefited their careers (4.308 with a standard deviation (SD) of 0.612); expanded their professional network (4.615, SD of 0.530); and had a large impact on the effectiveness of their leadership (4.288, SD of 0.667), their change management (4.365, SD of 0.742), and their communication (4.392, SD of 0.666). Graduates claimed to use Agile Processes (Innovation, Implementation, or Diffusion), storytelling, and nudging weekly. On a scale from 0 to 10 where 10 indicates reaching a mastery, the average score for different Agile competencies ranged from 5.37 (SD of 2.80) for drafting business proposals to 7.77 (SD of 1.96) for self-awareness. For the 2020 and 2021 cohorts with existing pre and post training competency data, 22 of the 26 competencies saw a statistically significant increase. Conclusion: The Graduate Certificate has been able to create a network of Agile Change Conductors competent to design, implement, and diffuse evidence-based care within the healthcare delivery system. Further improvements in building dissemination mastery and program expansion initiatives are advised.

Spinal Anesthesia is Superior to General Anesthesia for Percutaneous Achilles Tenotomy in Infants.

BACKGROUND: Concern about the effects of inhaled, halogenated anesthetics on neurodevelopment of infants has renewed interest in regional anesthesia as an alternative to general anesthesia (GA). Infants undergoing percutaneous Achilles tenotomy (PAT) are well suited for spinal anesthesia (SP). METHODS: Thirty infants (mean age: 2.3 mo) undergoing PAT with SP were compared with 15 infants (mean age: 2.0 mo) undergoing PAT with GA. Data collected included perioperative times, heart rate and blood pressure, and the administration of opioids. RESULTS: Ten of 15 GA (67%) patients received perioperative opioids as opposed to 1 of 30 SP patients (3.3%) (P<0.0001). The time from the start of anesthesia to the start of surgery was shorter in the SP group (8.5 vs. 14 min, P<0.0009). The time from the start of anesthesia to first oral intake was shorter in the SP group (12 vs. 31 min, P<0.0033). The time of first phase recovery (phase 1 post anesthesia care unit) was shorter in the SP group (15.5 vs. 34 min, P<0.0026). Surgery time was not significantly different between the groups (SP: 15.5 min, GA: 15 min, P=0.81). CONCLUSION: Infants undergoing PAT with SP received less opioid, did not require an airway device, did not receive potent inhaled, halogenated hydrocarbon anesthetics, and exhibited faster and qualitatively better postoperative recovery. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: Level III-case control study.

Modernizing Education of the Pediatric Anesthesiologist.

This article discusses modernizing the education of pediatric anesthesiologists in the United States. First, the current education requirements to become an American Board of Anesthesiology certified pediatric anesthesiologist are detailed and then, through a historical lens, the development of the subspecialty is examined. Gaps and challenges in the current training system are identified and interventions for improvement discussed. Additionally, suggestions are made and questions posed on how to move from a time-based model towards a competency-based curriculum.

Innovative Use of High-Fidelity Lung Simulators to Test a Ventilator Splitter Device.

The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has rapidly exposed health care system inadequacies. Hospital ventilator shortages in Italy compelled US physicians to consider creative solutions, such as using Y-pieces or T-pieces, to preclude the need to make decisions of life or death based on medical equipment availability. We add to current knowledge and testing capacity for ventilator splitters by reporting the ability to examine the functionality of ventilator splitters by using 2 high-fidelity lung simulators. Data obtained by the high-fidelity lung simulators included: tidal volume, respiratory rate, minute ventilation, peak inspiratory pressure, peak plateau pressure, and positive end-expiratory pressure.

Intraoperative Sepsis: A Simulation Case for Anesthesiology Residents.

Introduction: Sepsis is a major cause of morbidity and mortality in medicine and is managed in ICUs daily. Critical care training is a vital part of anesthesiology residency, and understanding the presentation, management, and treatment of septic shock is fundamental to intraoperative patient care. Methods: This simulation involved a 58-year-old man undergoing surgical debridement of a peripancreatic cyst with hemodynamic instability and septic shock. We conducted the simulation yearly for clinical anesthesia year 2 residents (n = 26) in 1-hour sessions with three to five learners at a time. The simulation covered the six Anesthesiology Milestones related to sepsis and septic shock as outlined in the Anesthesiology Milestones Project. Results: To date, 155 anesthesiology residents have completed the simulation. Commonly missed critical actions included failure to recognize the need for invasive lines, provide appropriate volumes of fluid resuscitation, inquire about blood cultures and antibiotics, and recognize the need for the patient to remain intubated. Most participants could appropriately diagnose and treat intraoperative septic shock, but all had moments of action or inaction to discuss and improve upon, and all learned from this scenario. Discussion: Simulation is an optimal way to practice the more rare and life-threatening clinical events in medicine. Even though septic shock is commonly managed in the ICU, it is relatively uncommon for it to develop acutely in the OR. This simulation is an effective and educational way to discuss the most recent sepsis/septic shock definition and review evidence-based guidelines for treatment.