Pediatric Rapid Response Team in a Community Based Hospital

[guardwife]

I work on a OB unit which recently added the pediatric unit to it. The hospital is really growing and there is talk of starting a Pedi RRT. Just want to gather some ideas. Here is some info regarding our hospital.

Currently we deliver about 1000 babies a year, have a busy RSV season, anything big gets transferred out to a large teaching hospital. Anesethia, peds are on 30 minute on call.

My questions are, Who comprises your team, Pedi or ER RN, RT hospitlist etc?

Training requirements etc.

Thanks

[PICNICRN, BSN, RN]

Our RRT consists of a PICU RN and RT and the House Supervisor. No docs because this is not a code. Seems to work pretty well so far- usually we get called for a pt with worsening condition(usually respiratory) when they can't get their hospitalist there to look at the kid. We(as the PICU) like it because it helps us "plan" for an admit. Sometimes the kid just needs a little "fine tuning" and stays on the floor.

[kessadawn, BSN, RN]

our rrt consists of picu rn, respiratory therapist, and picu np or resident (we don't always have nps at night). i work in a pediatric hospital , so there isn't any training required for the rrt that is different from the rest of us. all staff has pals, acls, and many have the neonatal version of these courses, although i can't remember the name of it. obviously, i don't have it!:chuckle

[ICRN2008, BSN, RN]

At the peds hospital I worked at, the rapid response team consisted of a critical care RN, critical care RT (many times our team from the helicoptor would come by), out team's resident MD, and the senior resident.

A few times I had to call in the RRT because the resident MD was too pigheaded to ask for help. I once had a kid whose HR dipped into the low 40s while awake, and it took forever to get someone to order an EKG. That was pretty scary, but he did okay.