Surgical Opioid Stewardship for Orthopedic Surgery: A Quality Improvement Initiative.

The aim of this quality improvement initiative was to reduce unnecessary opioid prescribing by sharing data with prescribers on opioid use by patients. In our study, transition of care clinicians performed follow-up phone calls to select postoperative orthopedic patients to determine opioid use. We implemented a standardized postoperative 7-day opioid wean and designed a dashboard to track the information gathered. We calculated descriptive statistics for continuous and categorical variables. In the initial assessment of opioid use by orthopedic patients, the study consisted of 296 patients with a mean age of 64.8±11.4 years, 147 females (49.7%) and 149 males (50.3%), 59.1% joint replacements (hip, knee, shoulder), and 40.9% spine surgeries (lumbar decompression, cervical fusion, hemilaminectomy). Among those prescribed an opioid, 50% received a prescription for 30 pills or less and 52.4% reported taking more than 80% of the opioid pills, while 35.1% reported taking less than 60%. In the prescribing quality improvement assessment, there were a total of 1547 hospitalizations for joint replacement surgeries from June 2018 to June 2020: 774 (50.0%) hips and 773 (50.0%) knees. There was a significant difference in morphine milligram equivalents per day and quantity prescribed when comparing the preintervention period with the postintervention period without significant increases in opioid refill requests or return visit rates. In our study, sharing data around patient opioid use and provider-facing prescribing metrics reduced postoperative opioid prescribing without significantly increasing opioid refill or emergency department return visit rates. [Orthopedics. 2023;46(4):e230-e236.].

Modifying Post-operative Opioid Stewardship Through a System of Educational Feedback.

Background: The opioid overdose epidemic remains one of the leading focuses of the United States' public health agenda. Current literature has suggested that many surgical procedures are associated with an increased risk of chronic opioid use in the post-operative period of opioid-naïve patients. We aimed to assess whether providing feedback on the average morphine milligram equivalents (MMED) and opioid utilization by selected post-operative patients would impact the provider opioid prescribing patterns.Methods: An opioid stewardship educational intervention provided didactic and email feedback to general surgeons about their prescribing patterns and summary feedback on opioid usage among post-operative patients from the pre-intervention period. We used descriptive statistics, Chi Square, Fisher's Exact test, Wilcoxon Rank Sum, two sample t test, and Spearman's rho to analyze the data gathered.Results: A total of 5142 patients with an average age of 43.9 years were included in the study period. Women accounted for 3096 (60.2%) and 2046 (39.8%) were men. The surgeries during the study period included 1928 (37.5%) appendectomies and 3214 (62.5%) cholecystectomies. The predominant surgical approach was laparoscopic 5028 (97.8%). In both groups, the total MMED and total number of pills prescribed decreased significantly after the intervention was implemented. There were no refill prescriptions nor 30-day readmissions among those discharged with an opioid prescription in either study phase.Discussion: An intervention that provided general surgeons with feedback about their post-operative prescription patterns and data on post-operative opioid utilization by patients decreased prescribed MMED.

Incidence of Secondary Hemophagocytic Lymphohistiocytosis in Critically-Ill COVID-19 Patients.

Objective Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is associated with diffuse lung injury that can progress to acute respiratory distress syndrome, multisystem-organ failure, and death. The inflammatory storm seen in many COVID-19 patients closely resembles secondary hemophagocytic lymphohistiocytosis (sHLH) which has been described in other virus-associated severe sepsis. We sought to describe the incidence of sHLH in COVID-19 infected patients. Design In this retrospective study, we reviewed the records of critically ill COVID-19 positive patients to determine the incidence of sHLH. An H-score for sHLH diagnosis was determined for each study participant, with a score greater than 169 points needed for diagnosis. Setting A quaternary referral center in suburban Pennsylvania, USA. Patients All study participants had a positive COVID-19 test, and were deemed critically ill defined as receiving invasive mechanical ventilation and/or who expired. Measurements and Main Results Of the 246 records identified, 242 records met inclusion criteria and were reviewed. Eighty five patients were excluded from analysis due to missing H-score data parameters. Overall, 32 of 157 (20.38%, 95% CI:14.38-27.54%) patients met diagnostic criteria for sHLH. The average age was 69.42 years (standard deviation (SD) 14.81). Patients diagnosed with sHLH were more likely to be younger (61.09 years vs 69.38 years, P = 0.0036), male (71.88% vs 52.00%, P = 0.0433), and require mechanical ventilation (96.88% vs 72.80%, P = 0.0035). Conclusions Among critically ill COVID-19 positive patients, the incidence of sHLH is higher than previously reported in patients with non-COVID-19 related sepsis. Clinicians caring for COVID-19 patients should consider this secondary diagnosis and subsequent appropriate treatments, especially in those requiring mechanical ventilation.

The Impact of Telephonic Follow-Up Within 2 Business Days Postdischarge on 30-Day Readmissions for Patients With Heart Failure.

BACKGROUND: Heart failure (HF) is a chronic condition associated with high rates of hospital readmissions. The prevalence and costs of HF are expected to rise dramatically by 2030 (Heidenreich,et al., 2013). OBJECTIVE: A 24-month, retrospective study was conducted using electronic medical record (EMR) chart review, seeking to identify if postdischarge follow-up phone calls decreased 30-day readmissions in individuals with HF. METHODS: The study included 705 adult participants who were admitted to the hospital for HF. Some received a postdischarge call within 2 business days of discharge, and some did not. RESULTS: Participants who received the postdischarge call were less likely to be readmitted (20.1%) than participants who did not receive a postdischarge call (28.8%; p = .007). Participants who received the postdischarge call were more likely to have a follow-up visit within 14 days (70.1%) than participants who did not receive a postdischarge call (30.2%; p < .001). CONCLUSIONS: The findings from this study may help to drive future transitional care strategies for individuals diagnosed with HF. IMPLICATIONS FOR NURSING: Nurse-led transitional care interventions offer potential solutions to ensure safe, effective hospital discharges.

Clinical and Demographic Parameters of Patients Treated Using a Sepsis Protocol.

PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to investigate potential differences by sex in the demographic and clinical characteristics of patients treated utilizing a sepsis electronic bundle order set. Risk factors for in-hospital mortality were also assessed. METHODS: Data on patients in whom the sepsis order set was initiated in the emergency department over a 16-month period were entered into the hospital database. Data were analyzed for differences by sex in demographic and clinical factors, treatment modalities, and in-hospital mortality. The Bonferroni correction was applied to account for multiple comparisons; α was set at 0.006 for sex differences. FINDINGS: A total of 2204 patients were included. Male and female cohorts were similar with regard to a variety of demographic and clinical factors, including age, Emergency Severity Index (ESI) levels 1 and 2, time to disposition, appropriateness of antibiotics, and total fluids given by weight. The ESI is an assessment score ranging from 1 to 5 (1 is emergent). There were modest differences in the source of infection (genitourinary was 4% more common in women; P = 0.03) and mode of arrival (men were 4% more likely to arrive by ambulance; P = 0.03). These differences did not achieve our predefined α of 0.006 when the Bonferroni correction was applied. Factors associated with in-hospital mortality were advanced age, arrival by ambulance, and an ESI level of 1 or 2 (all, P < 0.01). IMPLICATIONS: Women were more likely to have a genitourinary cause of sepsis and less likely to arrive by ambulance. Risk factors of in-hospital mortality were older age, arrival by ambulance, and an ESI level of 1 or 2, but not sex.

Clinical and financial considerations for implementing an ICU telemedicine program.

As the population in the United States increases and ages, the need to provide high-quality, safe, and cost-effective care to the most critically ill patients will be of great importance. With the projected shortage of intensivists, innovative changes to improve efficiency and increase productivity will be necessary. Telemedicine programs in the ICUs (tele-ICUs) are a successful strategy to improve intensivist access to critically ill patients. Although significant capital and maintenance costs are associated with tele-ICUs, these costs can be offset by indirect financial benefits, such as decreased length of stay. To achieve the positive clinical outcomes desired, tele-ICUs must be carefully designed and implemented. In this article, we discuss the clinical benefits of tele-ICUs. We review the financial considerations, including direct and indirect reimbursement and development and maintenance costs. Finally, we review design and implementation considerations for tele-ICUs.

Association of health information technology and teleintensivist coverage with decreased mortality and ventilator use in critically ill patients.

BACKGROUND: Little evidence exists to support implementing various health information technologies, such as telemedicine, in intensive care units. METHODS: A coordinated health information technology bundle (HITB) was implemented along with remote intensivist coverage (RIC) at a 727-bed academic community hospital. Critical care specialists provided bedside coverage during the day and RIC at night to achieve intensivist coverage 24 hours per day, 7 days per week. We evaluated the effect of HITB-RIC on mortality, ventilator and vasopressor use, and the intervention length of stay. We compared our results with those achieved at baseline. RESULTS: A total of 954 control patients who received care for 16 months before the implementation of HITB-RIC and 959 study patients who received care for 10 months after the implementation were included in the analysis. Mortality for the control and intervention groups were 21.4% and 14.7%, respectively. In addition, the observed mortality for the intervention group was 75.8% (P < .001) of that predicted by the Acute Physiology and Chronic Health Evaluation IV hospital mortality equations, which was 29.5% lower relative to the control group. Regression results confirm that the hospital mortality of the intensive care unit patients was significantly lower after implementation of the intervention, controlling for predicted risk of mortality and do-not-resuscitate status. Overall, intervention patients also had significantly less (P = .001) use of mechanical ventilation, controlling for body-system diagnosis category and severity of illness. CONCLUSION: The use of HITB-RIC was associated with significantly lower mortality and less ventilator use in critically ill patients.

Persistence of Apnea in Wakefulness in a Patient with Postradiation Pharyngitis.

We report on a patient with the onset of recurrent nocturnal awakenings associated with postawakening stridor with onset a few weeks after receiving radiation therapy to the neck. The onset of nocturnal stridor was also accompanied by complaints of snoring and excessive daytime sleepiness. Stridor did not occur during daytime wakefulness. Nocturnal polysomnography (NPSG) recorded with a calibrated pneumotachometer demonstrated snoring and severe obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) with a apnea/hypopnea index of 51 events/hr. One apneic episode persisted for 17 sec after the onset of wakefulness as evidenced by standard NPSG scoring criteria for arousals. With this event, video monitoring revealed the patient abruptly sitting upright and clutching his throat and auditory recording demonstrated stridorous sounds. During wakefulness endoscopy revealed moderate edema and erythema of the supraglottic region, epiglottis, palatine tonsils, and false and true vocal cords. Vocal cord function appeared normal. This case report represents the observation of two rare findings in a single patient, persistence of apnea in wakefulness, and OSA onset following neck irradiation. We review the literature on the persistence of apnea in wakefulness and discuss possible mechanisms for its occurrence in this patient.