Communication and general concern criterion prior to activation of the rapid response team: a grounded theory.

Conclusions This study highlighted that in the surveillance and management of the deteriorating patient and in the absence of effective communication there is a subsequent increase in anxiety, fear or concern that can be directly attributed to the activation of an RRT for the 'general concern' calling criteria.What is known about the topic? Deficiencies in collaboration and communication between healthcare professionals (HCPs) increase the stress and anxiety of healthcare staff and correspond to poorer outcomes for patients. The RRT can be activated as a 'general concern RRT' without observation of physiological derangements if staff are concerned about a patient's condition, allowing for assistance from a skilled critical care team at the patient's bedside. There are limited data on how poor communication affects the frequency of activation of general concern RRTs.What does this paper add? This study shows that poor communication between health professionals increases staff levels of anxiety and concern. In addition, the RRT system is being used to fill deficiencies in many other hospital processes, including end-of-life discussions. The deficiencies in hospital processes contribute to poor communication and increased levels of concern with this study demonstrating a direct link between a clinician's level of anxiety/concern and the 'general concern' activation category for the RRT system.What are the implications for practitioners? The present study highlights the importanc...
Source: Australian Health Review - Category: Hospital Management Authors: Tags: Aust Health Rev Source Type: research