Colorado, Here We Come!
By Peter Antevy, MD – Wheels up! I am headed to Colorado this week for a really exciting trip! While there’s a lot scheduled in a short visit and I am also taking my 10-year-old son with me for the first time so I’m looking forward to it.
Denver Health is hosting the 43rd annual Rocky Mountain Trauma and Emergency Medicine Conference and I am honored to be delivering the opening keynote on June 16th focusing on Pediatric Resuscitation Psychology. It turns out that the behavioral economics of pediatric resuscitation and the quality of the team skills are more important than any one particular individual involved in the resuscitation (doctors I’m looking at you). All of you reading this post know that when you walk into a pediatric code all eyes are on the physician. The term I use is “doctor-centric.” Need a drug dose? Ask the doctor. Tube size? Ask the doctor. Levophed drip? How much? How fast? How do we make that? You get the point. And it’s been like that for decades. Combine this with the inherent stress of pediatrics and it’s a recipe for disaster. Furthermore, it leaves behind a heavy emotional burden for everyone involved. But, it doesn’t have to be this way. Success in the pediatric code room depends on the team, not an individual. Positive change and improved outcomes can be a reality if the appropriate system is in place.
As part of my trip, I’ll also be spending a half-day with the Denver Health Medical Center team, facilitating training. They recently deployed Handtevy in their Emergency Department on the heels of the success Denver Health Paramedics experienced using the Handtevy System – good news really does travel fast!
“No one person should be responsible for the success of the resuscitation; a system should be in place that forces success every time.”
Industry thought leaders like Denver Health are continuing to pave the way for Handtevy’s use in hospital settings. As a matter of fact, our Director of Nursing, Maricar Cabral, recently provided on site training at Telluride Medical Center; and West Metro Fire is currently in the process of implementation as well (I look forward to training with them on Monday).
We are quickly moving forward, now with Handtevy partners in 34 States. Our message is strengthening, the impact is broadening and we are driven by a few basic principles:
1. No one person should be responsible for the success of the resuscitation; a system should be in place that forces success every time.
2. Medication calculations should be eliminated – Predetermine all medication doses, mixtures and infusion instructions for all ages. Ditto for equipment.
3. We must require real-time verification of all medication dosages by a team member NOT involved in drawing up the medication originally.
4. Documentation in the EMR should happen in real time – Unfortunately the current EMRs are not fast enough to keep up with the speed of the pediatric code. We have developed a mechanism to do exactly that and we are now integrating the data directly into the EMR.
5. Lastly, let’s all recognize that kids deserve to be treated like adults – They deserve the highest quality of care and our expectation should be that their outcomes are just as good….or better!
See you soon, Colorado!