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BACKGROUND: Foreign body ingestion is a common reason for paediatric emergency department (ED) attendance. At baseline in our institution, only 55% of children were managed in accordance with international best practice. No local guideline was in place. AIM: To implement a locally developed guideline and educational intervention to improve adherence to best practice in the management of paediatric foreign body ingestion. METHODS: We conducted a quality improvement project in a single tertiary ED over 5 months, using three plan-do-study-act (PDSA) cycles. Interventions included guideline development, dissemination at NCHD induction and departmental teaching and case-based discussions. The SMART aim was to improve correct management from 55% to >80% within 5 months. The primary outcome measure was the proportion of cases managed correctly according to the guideline. Process measures were unnecessary imaging and inappropriate specialist referrals; return visits were tracked as a balancing measure. Data were analysed descriptively and displayed using a p-chart. Educational impact was explored with case vignettes. RESULTS: 27 consecutive patients were included in the intervention period. Correct management increased from 55% at baseline to 87%-100% across PDSA cycles, exceeding the SMART aim. Process measures improved: unnecessary imaging decreased from 16% to 12% and inappropriate referrals from 3% to 0%. Avoidable return visits fell from 4% to 0%, without evidence of harm. Case vignette scores improved modestly (54%-63%), with variation across individual cases. CONCLUSION: Introduction of a locally developed guideline significantly improved adherence to best practice in paediatric foreign body ingestion. Improvements extended to process and balancing measures, demonstrating a true test of change. Embedding the guideline in induction, teaching and the hospital intranet is expected to support sustainability.
Fouche et al. (Wed,) studied this question.