Effect of Digital Early Warning Scores on Hospital Vital Sign Observation Protocol Adherence: Stepped-Wedge Evaluation.

ABSTRACT:

Background

Early warning scores (EWS) are routinely used in hospitals to assess a patient's risk of deterioration. EWS are traditionally recorded on paper observation charts but are increasingly recorded digitally. In either case, evidence for the clinical effectiveness of such scores is mixed, and previous studies have not considered whether EWS leads to changes in how deteriorating patients are managed.

Objective

This study aims to examine whether the introduction of a digital EWS system was associated with more frequent observation of patients with abnormal vital signs, a precursor to earlier clinical intervention.

Methods

We conducted a 2-armed stepped-wedge study from February 2015 to December 2016, over 4 hospitals in 1 UK hospital trust. In the control arm, vit

SUBMITTER: Wong DC 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC11224703 | biostudies-literature | 2024 Jun

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature