rapid response team.anyone using this? - Page 2

We also have this at our hospital. They just recently started doing this (about 6 months ago) and we have benefited greatly from it. Especially when you are a new nurse like me and know that something is definitely wrong with your pt, but not sure if you should call the doctor or if the pt needs to be transferred to critical care. This team comes and assesses the pt and will call the dr and anything else that needs to be done. Sometimes they come and you have to call a code. They told us to call them anytime we were uncomfortable in a situation, even if we thought we might look stupid. This has been one of the greatest changes our hospital has made.

The VA in Sacramento, attempted to do the Rapid Response team also...unfortunatley not much thought was put into this. The plan was implemented without regard to ICU staffing....our charge nurse takes a full load as do all the ICU Nurses....but we were mandated to respond any time called...sooooooo who is watching or is responsible for the ICU patient during this time....enough said.

There are whispers around our facility of starting a RRT and i hope they do. Especially on days when we are busy as all get out and one little patient can make the whole thing come to a screeching hault.
That would be a godsend for us to have a team to call in to monitor and assess and help with that kind of situation. I cant wait!!
One patient going bad can take up all morning calling doctors, monitoring and recalling new labs,, etc etc. All you can do is hope your other patients are still hanging in there.

To date, RRT has worked out wonderfully at our hospital.
I have not heard any negatives from our end.

I agree that a rapid response team is the way to go...it can be very beneficial. However our particular facility puts the responsibility on the ICU RN to respond....We could do this if staffing allowed...as it stands now all of our nurses in the ICU are at the maximum staffing level for ICU as is the ICU Charge Nurse carrying the same load while performing charge duties. Our policy states that the responder must assume full responsibility for the patient he/she is responding to until full resolution. So this means a responder can be on the floor with the patient for 5 minutes or for several hours, leaving fellow staff members with responsibility for not only their patients but the responders patients. Other Hospitals I have checked with that have this program either has a responder team or the ICU charge Nurse does not take a patient assignment and responds to codes and RRT's.
Patient safety is first and foremost and should remain as such.

Ah yeah places are starting them its kinda like a JCAHO requirement or highly encouraged-- they big buzz words are patient saftey.

Our hospital has a nurse from different critical care area respond each week along with an orderly(case things go down hill and someone needs to do CPR), the house supervisor(Nursing).

RJ

Thats what im hearing that the RRT would consist of an ICU nurse and house super. Which is who we call if things go bad and we cant get a reasonable response from the doctor. It might keep things from getting to the point of calling a code which is my goal in it in the first place.

I understand the staffing thing though. Not right for ICU to have to put up the staff without having adequate backup for them in the unit. House super,, we have a few that need to get in there and actually DO something.

:blushkiss At my workplace this concept is still on a trial basis but I think efficient nursing care is still the most effective approach to be used. Specially because the people who's supposed to be part of RRT is not that well attuned to the concept yet. :wink2:

We very recently implemented a RRT, but the on-call person is either an APRN or PA in-house for that shift, so we aren't pulling someone from an ICU. They are awesome on night shift because we unfortunately get a lot of doctors who don't take the staff nurses' assessment of patients conditions seriously. Before RRT, we'd be pulling out our hair just hoping our pt didn't crash on our shift because the doc couldn't be bothered to order needed tests or interventions.

Our RRT is AWESOME!! Consists of 2 ICU nurses and a resp therapist. Totally awesome, can't say enough about them. If any facility is contemplating starting one, I say GO FOR IT - YOU WON'T BE SORRY!