Raoultella ornithinolytica Urinary Tract Infection in a Patient With Triple-Negative Breast Cancer.

Due to the challenges associated with accurately identifying Raoultella ornithinolytica as the causative agent in urinary tract infections (UTIs), coupled with limited guidance on treatment protocols, reports of similar cases still need to be made publicly available because of their increasing emergence. In this article, we present the first documented case of a UTI caused by Raoultella ornithinolytica in a patient with triple-negative breast cancer undergoing neoadjuvant chemotherapy. This case report highlights Raoultella ornithinolytica as an uncommon yet significant pathogen, particularly in immunocompromised patients. Given the bacterium's antibiotic resistance patterns, it emphasizes the importance of prompt, accurate identification methods and tailored treatment strategies, especially in vulnerable populations undergoing chemotherapy.

Evaluation of Learning Teams Versus Root Cause Analysis for Incident Investigation in a Large United Kingdom National Health Service Hospital.

INTRODUCTION: Significant resource is invested into investigation of adverse healthcare events. Outcomes of such investigations have varying degrees of effectiveness. The "hierarchy of effectiveness" model proposes system-focused changes have greater impact than person-focused actions. The traditional approach to investigation is root cause analysis (RCA); however, such an approach does not prioritize system-focused action generation. Learning team-based investigations are thought to generate more effective system-focused actions; however, this has not been evaluated. METHODS: Retrospective mixed methods evaluation of learning teams compared with RCA. Twenty-two learning team investigations compared with 22 RCA investigations, with quantitative assessment of the number of system-focused and person-focused actions generated. Assignment of the two different methods to incidents was not random, with learning teams being selected for cases, which were initially judged to be process-focused problems. Semistructured interviews were conducted with four learning team facilitators with thematic analysis to identify causes for outcome variations. RESULTS: Learning team investigations yielded a median of 7.5 actions compared with 3.5 actions for RCA: 57% of learning team actions were system focused versus 30% for RCA. We identified variations in personnel involved, culture of the investigation, and differences in the investigative approaches as potential drivers for these differences. CONCLUSIONS: We observed that learning team investigations that targeted process-focused problems generated more actions and a higher number of system-focused actions. There is a difference in culture created during learning team investigations. Although learning teams are not suitable for all investigations, they represent a readily reproducible and valuable addition to the investigative toolkit.

Experiences, challenges and lessons learnt in medical staff redeployment during response to COVID-19.

Background: The response to the COVID-19 pandemic required redeployment of large numbers of staff to avoid acute services being overwhelmed. This unprecedented, previously unplanned redeployment occurred in a rapidly changing environment. This paper describes the process of redeployment at a teaching hospital and assessment of this by the redeployed doctors and redeployment team. Objective: Identify key lessons from the redeployment process to inform resilience and future planning for further COVID-19 peaks. Methods: Redeployment team experiences and challenges were documented in real time and formal structured feedback obtained. All redeployed doctors were asked for quantitative and qualitative feedback regarding their experiences in two distinct acute areas with different approaches to staffing. Results: 63 redeployed staff and five members of the redeployment team completed feedback questionnaires. Most redeployed doctors (76%) were satisfied and had adequate support and training. Redeployment was associated with self-reported stress and anxiety in 95% with 59% describing this as moderate or greater. This was reduced by adequate communication, supervision and a sense of belonging to a firm with access to simple information making a significant difference. Awareness of and satisfaction with well-being support services was also high (71%).The redeployment team identified having a well-mixed team who met daily, an online portal and engagement with leads as the key factors for being successful. Conclusion: Redeployment in response to COVID-19 was associated with reported stress and anxiety in most redeployed doctors. Communication, local induction and feeling valued and being part of a team helped reduce this.

Does a novel method of delivering the safe surgical checklist improve compliance? A closed loop audit.

BACKGROUND: In February 2010, the UK National Patient Safety Agency set a mandate that the World Health Organisation's Surgical Safety Checklist (SSC) should be completed for every surgical patient within the NHS in a bid to improve surgical safety. However since its introduction, there have been issues with checklist compliance, staff engagement and surgical serious incidents continue. AIMS: This study seeks to explore if an unavoidable pre-recorded audio delivery of the SSC improves compliance and staff engagement with the checklist. METHODS: The performance of the time-out and sign-out sections of the SSC were observed in three phases: standard practice, audio prompt and full audio delivery. Two researchers visited operating theatres throughout a three-week period. The outcome measures were occurrence of time-out/sign-out, completion of checklist, and presence, and engagement of staff during checklist administration. Staff feedback on the process was also sought. RESULTS: Observation of time-out and sign-out was undertaken for 92 procedures. Time-out and sign-out were performed for 100% of the procedures when using full audio delivery of the SSC, an improvement on findings during the standard practice phase (time out- 97.4%, sign out- 86.8%). The compliance with completion of checklist items also improved with audio delivery of the SSC. However, the presence of all key staff and active participation of team members with the checklist was unaffected by the mode of delivery. Team members' self-reported engagement did not significantly vary across the different practices. CONCLUSION: The intervention seems to improve rate of checklist completion, particularly signout. It also brought more consistency on the questions read out during checklist administration. It doesn't necessarily ensure all key staff are present neither does it significantly improve staff engagement in the process.

Using international data to set benchmarks for morbidity outcomes after hysterectomy.

OBJECTIVE: To set an international benchmark for monitoring morbidity after hysterectomy. METHODS: In a retrospective, observational study, data were assessed from women who underwent abdominal, vaginal, or laparoscopic hysterectomy in three countries (Australia, England, and the USA) between 2008 and 2012. The main outcome measures were length of stay (LOS), readmission, hemorrhage, and intraoperative conversion. RESULTS: Overall, 32 181 procedures were included. The intraoperative conversion rate from vaginal and laparoscopic to abdominal hysterectomy was 1.5%. The LOS was significantly higher after abdominal surgery (3 days) than after vaginal (2 days; P<0.001) or laparoscopic (1 day; P<0.001) surgery. LOS was also higher after conversion (3 days) than after vaginal and laparoscopic hysterectomy (P<0.001 for both). Conversion cases had the highest rate of hemorrhage (7.5% vs 2.4% for abdominal, 1.8% vaginal, and 1.2% laparoscopic) and readmission (5.0% vs 4.2% for abdominal, 3.1% vaginal, and 2.8% laparoscopic). The odds of readmission were higher after abdominal than after laparoscopic hysterectomy (odds ratio 1.41, 95% confidence interval 1.19-1.67; P<0.001). CONCLUSION: The morbidity associated with different surgical approaches to hysterectomy, including after intraoperative conversion, should be used as a benchmark. There is a need to measure and publish morbidity data after hysterectomy.

Osmolar regulation of endothelin-1 production by the inner medullary collecting duct.

AIMS: Endothelin-1 (ET-1) is an autocrine inhibitor of collecting duct (CD) Na(+) and water reabsorption. CD ET-1 production is increased by a high salt diet and is important in promoting a natriuretic response. The mechanisms by which a high salt diet enhances CD ET-1 are being uncovered. In particular, elevated tubule fluid flow, as occurs in salt loading, enhances CD ET-1 synthesis. Tubule fluid solute content and interstitial osmolality can also be altered by a high salt diet, however their effect on CD ET-1 alone, or in combination with flow, is poorly understood. MAIN METHODS: ET-1 mRNA production by a mouse inner medullary CD cell line (mIMCD3) in response to changing flow and/or osmolality was assessed. KEY FINDINGS: Flow or hyperosmolality (using NaCl, mannitol or urea) individually caused an ~2-fold increase in ET-1 mRNA, while flow and hyperosmolality together increased ET-1 mRNA by ~14 fold. The hyperosmolality effect alone and the synergistic effect of flow + hyperosmolality was inhibited by chelation of intracellular Ca(2+), however were not altered by blockade of downstream Ca(2+)-signaling pathways (calcineurin or NFATc), inhibition of cellular Ca(2+) entry channels (purinergic receptors or polycystin-2), or blockade of the epithelial Na(+) channel. Inhibition of NFAT5 with rottlerin or NFAT5 siRNA greatly reduced the stimulatory effect of osmolality alone and osmolality + flow on mIMCD3 ET-1 mRNA levels. SIGNIFICANCE: Both flow and osmolality individually and synergistically stimulate mIMCD3 ET-1 mRNA content. These findings may be relevant to explaining high salt diet induction of CD ET-1 production.

Flow regulation of endothelin-1 production in the inner medullary collecting duct.

Collecting duct-derived endothelin (ET)-1 is an autocrine inhibitor of Na(+) and water reabsorption; its deficiency causes hypertension and water retention. Extracellular fluid volume expansion increases collecting duct ET-1, thereby promoting natriuresis and diuresis; however, how this coupling between volume expansion and collecting duct ET-1 occurs is incompletely understood. One possibility is that volume expansion increases tubular fluid flow. To investigate this, cultured IMCD3 cells were subjected to static or flow conditions. Exposure to a shear stress of 2 dyn/cm(2) for 2 h increased ET-1 mRNA content by ∼2.3-fold. Absence of perfusate Ca(2+), chelation of intracellular Ca(2+), or inhibition of Ca(2+) signaling (calmodulin, Ca(2+)/calmodulin-dependent kinase, calcineurin, PKC, or phospholipase C) prevented the flow response. Evaluation of possible flow-activated Ca(2+) entry pathways revealed no role for transient receptor potential (TRP)C3, TRPC6, and TRPV4; however, cells with TRPP2 (polycystin-2) knockdown had no ET-1 flow response. Flow increased intracellular Ca(2+) was blunted in TRPP2 knockdown cells. Nonspecific blockade of P2 receptors, as well as specific inhibition of P2X7 and P2Y2 receptors, prevented the ET-1 flow response. The ET-1 flow response was not affected by inhibition of either epithelial Na(+) channels or the mitochondrial Na(+)/Ca(2+) exchanger. Taken together, these findings provide evidence that in IMCD3 cells, flow, via polycystin-2 and P2 receptors, engages Ca(2+)-dependent signaling pathways that stimulate ET-1 synthesis.

Na delivery and ENaC mediate flow regulation of collecting duct endothelin-1 production.

Collecting duct (CD) endothelin-1 (ET-1) is an important autocrine inhibitor of Na and water transport. CD ET-1 production is stimulated by extracellular fluid volume expansion and tubule fluid flow, suggesting a mechanism coupling CD Na delivery and ET-1 synthesis. A mouse cortical CD cell line, mpkCCDc14, was subjected to static or flow conditions for 2 h at 2 dyn/cm(2), followed by determination of ET-1 mRNA content. Flow with 300 mosmol/l NaCl increased ET-1 mRNA to 65% above that observed under static conditions. Increasing perfusate osmolarity to 450 mosmol/l with NaCl or Na acetate increased ET-1 mRNA to ∼184% compared with no flow, which was not observed when osmolarity was increased using mannitol or urea. Reducing Na concentration to 150 mosmol/l while maintaining total osmolarity at 300 mosmol/l with urea or mannitol decreased the flow response. Inhibition of epithelial Na channel (ENaC) with amiloride or benzamil abolished the flow response, suggesting involvement of ENaC in flow-regulated ET-1 synthesis. Aldosterone almost doubled the flow response. Since Ca(2+) enhances CD ET-1 production, the involvement of plasma membrane and mitochondrial Na/Ca(2+) exchangers (NCX) was assessed. SEA0400 and KB-R7943, plasma membrane NCX inhibitors, did not affect the flow response. However, CGP37157, a mitochondrial NCX inhibitor, abolished the response. In summary, the current study indicates that increased Na delivery, leading to ENaC-mediated Na entry and mitochondrial NCX activity, is involved in flow-stimulated CD ET-1 synthesis. This constitutes the first report of either ENaC or mitochondrial NCX regulation of an autocrine factor in any biologic system.

Matching surgical operating capacity to demand using estimates of operating times.

PURPOSE: This paper sets out to investigate whether demand for gynaecological theatre time could be described in terms of the time required to undertake elective operations booked for surgery, and so help match the capacity to this. DESIGN/METHODOLOGY/APPROACH: A questionnaire assessed the estimates for total operation time for seven common operations, sent to surgeons, anaesthetists and nursing staff in one tertiary referral and one district general hospital (total 49 staff; response rate 58 per cent), and estimates were obtained from theatre computer logs. Average timings for each operation were then applied to cases added from clinics to the waiting list at the district general, to yield the mean demand for elective surgery, and were also applied to emergencies to estimate emergency workload. Finally these demand estimates were compared with the theatre capacity available. FINDINGS: The paper found no difference between the estimates of the three staff groups or between these and the theatre logs (p = 0.669), nor did it find that estimates differed between the two centers (p = 0.628). Including emergencies, the mean (95 per cent confidence intervals) demand at the district general was 2438 (1952-2924) min/week. RESEARCH LIMITATIONS/IMPLICATIONS: Although the paper modelled the variation in demand using the relevant variation in operation times, any additional variation caused by differences in booking rates from clinics over time was not nodelled. The minimum period over which data should be collected was not established. PRACTICAL IMPLICATIONS: The paper finds that the existing capacity of 1680 min/week did not match these needs and, unless it was increased, a rise in waiting lists was predictable. ORIGINALITY/VALUE: The paper concludes that time estimates for scheduled operations can be better used to assess the need for surgical operating capacity than current measures of demand or capacity.

Embolization as first-line treatment in the management of puerperal hematoma in a case of congenital urogenital anomaly.

This case report highlights the need for detailed consideration of a patient's entire medical history before complex surgical management. This is a complex case of congenital urogenital anomaly that had obstetric complications. Our patient had a pelvic hematoma following a home birth, which was treated with pelvic artery embolization. We are fortunate to have local expertise in pelvic artery embolization and demonstrate excellent multidisciplinary management of a complex case.

Tocolysis for repeat external cephalic version in breech presentation at term: a randomised, double-blinded, placebo-controlled trial.

BACKGROUND: External cephalic version (ECV) reduces the incidence of breech presentation at term and caesarean section for non-cephalic births. Tocolytics may improve success rates, but are time consuming, may cause side effects and have not been proven to alter caesarean section rates. The aim of this trial was to determine whether tocolysis should be used if ECV is being re-attempted after a failed attempt. OBJECTIVE: To determine whether tocolysis should be used if ECV is being re-attempted after a failed attempt. DESIGN: Randomised, double-blinded, placebo-controlled trial. SETTING: UK teaching hospital. POPULATION: One hundred and twenty-four women with a breech presentation at term who had undergone an unsuccessful attempt at ECV. METHODS: Relative risks with 95% confidence intervals for categorical variables and a t test for continuous variables. Analysis was by intention to treat. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Incidence of cephalic presentation at delivery. Secondary outcomes were caesarean section and measures of neonatal and maternal morbidity. RESULTS: The use of tocolysis for a repeat attempt at ECV significantly increases the incidence of cephalic presentation at delivery (RR 3.21; 95% CI 1.23-8.39) and reduces the incidence of caesarean section (RR 0.33; 95% CI 0.14-0.80). The effects were most marked in multiparous women (RR for cephalic presentation at delivery 9.38; 95% CI 1.64-53.62). Maternal and neonatal morbidity remain unchanged. CONCLUSIONS: The use of tocolysis increases the success rate of repeat ECV and reduces the incidence of caesarean section. A policy of only using tocolysis where an initial attempt has failed leads to a relatively high success rate with minimum usage of tocolysis.

National survey for intrapartum and postpartum bladder care: assessing the need for guidelines.

Variation in the practice of intrapartum and postpartum bladder care reported by 189 maternity units in England and Wales hospitals was evaluated by analysing the data obtained from a postal questionnaire completed by labour ward managers or heads of midwifery. The survey revealed that there was no consensus of opinion about the diagnostic criteria for postpartum urinary retention and therefore the optimum management for voiding dysfunction remains controversial. In spite of the increasing awareness of the risk management issues involved, the majority of the units were found to be non-compliant with the limited RCOG recommendations currently available. Although further research is needed to develop evidence-based guidelines, all units should be timing and measuring the voided volume and ideally checking the first post-void residual volume to ensure that retention does not go unrecognised.