Do Paediatric early warning systems (PEWS) improve the detection and response to clinical deterioration in children?
Current literature lacks evidence examining Paediatric Early Warning Systems as complex healthcare interventions, indicating a need for broader sociotechnical research.
Despite many studies reporting on the complexity and multifaceted nature of PEWS, no evidence was sourced which examined PEWS as a complex healthcare intervention. Future research needs to investigate PEWS as a complex multifaceted sociotechnical system that is embedded in a wider safety culture influenced by many organisational and human factors. PEWS should be embraced as a part of a larger multifaceted safety framework that will develop and grow over time with strong governance and leadership, targeted training, ongoing support and continuous improvement.
Lambert et al. (Wed,) studied this question.