Rapid Response Team

We are looking at this at our facility. Am wondering how other facilities are dealing with the issue of getting help to the patient before they code. If you have a team - who makes up the team? How are they activated?

Thanks

sue

We have a team at our hospital. It consists of an ICU RN, a critical care respiratory therapist, and the house supervisor. During the week on the day the shifts, the ICU manager and ICU educator are also part of the team. We each carry a beeper and whoever needs help calls the operator and she will activate our beepers with a text message containing the area/room where the team is needed.

I think it has helped in some cases getting patients to the unit quickly and before they code, but we have also had a lot of bogus calls too. We've gone to our psych facility because pts were acting "crazy"...you do the math. Once our nurse got there, they ended up putting a pt on the bedpan. Some calls are just to help a worried/anxious nurse before she can get in touch with a doctor.

As a part of this team, we are not there to do the work of the nurse, but to help educate them and get them to do the right things for the pt. We can make suggestions, but they are the ones who are supposed to be calling the doctor, getting orders, etc. We will also assist with transport of the pt to the unit if that is what is required.

I have found being on the day shift we don't get as many calls as the night shift seems to get. I think that's just a matter of there being more resources available during the day.

We have a rescue ax team. ICU Charge, RT, Pharmacy, Hospitalist, Lab, Security and House Supervisor. House sup can call on more support or wave off people if needed. If on peds or NICU, NNP will respond. We have guidelines for when to call a "RAT" It is initiated by calling the switchboard. We encourage no more than 10-15 minutes in the room and get to ICU. We actually like people to call them.. better safe than sorry and they are not abused here. Reducing code blues is a JCAHO iniative and a big patient safety issue.

Good luck and encourage the use of!!