British journal of anaesthesia
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Randomized Controlled Trial
Errors during the preparation of drug infusions: a randomized controlled trial.
We investigated the extent and frequency of dose errors and treatment delays made as a consequence of preparing drug infusions at the bedside, rather than using pre-filled syringes. ⋯ Providing drug infusions in syringes pre-filled by pharmacists or pharmaceutical companies would reduce medication errors and treatment delays, and improve patient safety. However, this approach would have substantial financial implications for healthcare providers, especially in less developed countries.
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Airway problems continue to occur in intensive care setting. Management strategies, staffing, and availability of equipment can all have an influence. ⋯ There remains room for improvement in airway management strategies and resources in ICUs in the UK.
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Cardiopulmonary exercise testing (CPET) is used to assess perioperative risk in surgical patients. While previous studies have looked at short-term outcomes, this paper explores the ability of CPET to predict 5 yr survival after major surgery. ⋯ Multivariate analysis and model generation techniques can be applied to CPET data to predict 5 yr survival after major surgery more accurately than is possible with single variable analysis.
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Both technical skills (TS) and non-technical skills (NTS) are key to ensuring patient safety in acute care practice and effective crisis management. These skills are often taught and assessed separately. We hypothesized that TS and NTS are not independent of each other, and we aimed to evaluate the relationship between TS and NTS during a simulated intraoperative crisis scenario. ⋯ During a simulated 5 min resuscitation requiring crisis resource management, our results indicate that TS and NTS are related to one another. This research provides the basis for future studies evaluating the nature of this relationship, the influence of NTS training on the performance of TS, and to determine whether NTS are generic and transferrable between crises that require different TS.