Abstract Rationale In recent years, single-use bronchoscopes have become increasingly popular in the critical care setting due to their ease of access, sterility, and forgoing the need for reprocessing. Despite their growing popularity, there is limited data on how they may impact the workflow and satisfaction of the healthcare professionals who assist in the procedures. The purpose of this study was to measure the impact of single-use bronchoscopes on staff workflow and satisfaction in the after-hours critical setting. Methods A survey was distributed to healthcare professionals who assist in critical care bronchoscopy cases in the United States via a third-party agency. Survey questions were related to their experiences, preferences, and ideas on how to improve the critical care setting. “Assist in” was defined as completing one or more of the following: preparing endoscopes, assisting in procedures, endoscope reprocessing, scheduling, and/or purchasing equipment. Averages and proportions were calculated. Results 94 responses were collected from individuals who currently assist in critical care bronchoscopy cases, with 93 regularly working with reusables. Of those who work with reusables, 38.7% (n = 36) stated that they work after-hours at least once a month. Of the respondents who reported working after-hours (n = 75), 36% were pulmonology endoscopy nurses, 28% were respiratory therapists, 33.3% were from community urban hospitals, 28% were from private hospitals, 21.3% were from community rural hospitals, and 14.7% were from academic medical centers. During these after-hours cases, it took them on average 14.7 minutes to prepare (n = 54), 17.5 minutes to transport (n = 2), and 18.75 minutes to reprocess (n = 20) each endoscope per case. 84% (n = 78) and 86% (n = 80) of the respondents stated that single-use endoscopes would help reduce after-hours workloads and increase staff satisfaction, respectively. Some reasons provided for why they would increase staff satisfaction were: allowing for better time management (76%, n = 61), reducing overall workload (58%, n = 44), eliminating time on scope reprocessing (58%, n = 46), and improving confidence in scope readiness and performance (51%, n = 41). Conclusions The adoption of single-use bronchoscopes in the critical-care setting may not only help clinicians better care for patients but help with the efficiency and satisfaction of the providers who assist in after-hours procedures. By eliminating the needs for extensive endoscope preparation, transport, and reprocessing, healthcare facilities adopting single-use bronchoscopes may see improved workflows, increased satisfaction, and potentially a reduction in overtime costs. This abstract is funded by: Ambu USA
Hoffman et al. (Fri,) studied this question.