Abstract Purpose of Project: The goal of this quality improvement project was to implement an obstetric sepsis algorithm within the electronic medical record system in a NYC hospital facility. In addition, assessment of antibiotic administration times was observed pre and post implementation of this new obstetric bundle. Methodology: This DNP project encompassed electronic medical record data from a total of 104 female patients, that included vital sign criteria that would alert users of patients meeting criteria to trigger the alert of the bundle. In addition, a total of 15 nurses responded to survey data assessing the feasibility of use of the new algorithm and an outlet to provide feedback on its use. Results: Limited results obtained. Retrieval of data was dependent on the onsite mentor with access, with no possibility of re-entering data retrieval system at a later time due to departure of site mentor from the facility to a location outside of the state. Of the data that was collected, one patient demonstrated elevated temperature reading with no antibiotic administration prior to implementation of the algorithm, and two patients triggered the bundle post implementation, with only one receiving antibiotics. Staff nurses surveyed stated the new algorithm was easy to follow, allowed for identification of abnormal vital signs, able to notify providers in a timely manner, and activate the necessary orders for this bundle, however, the nurses verbalized unfamiliarity of the origins of this algorithm, and stated communication barriers as source of continued concerns. Implications for Practice: The implementation of this algorithm and triggering bundle allows for standardization of current clinical practice guidelines. Additionally, with implementation, the allowance of data collection metrics now exist to follows trends of infection rates within this labor and delivery unit and monitor quality metrics over time.
Jasmin Guisao (Thu,) studied this question.