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Objective Peripherally inserted central catheters (PICC) are frequently used to deliver medical therapies, but our knowledge regarding PICC-related complications remains incomplete. The objective of this study was to systematically elicit and characterise PICC-related complications as experienced by patients during and after hospitalisation. Design Prospective cohort study. Setting Inpatient medical units at four US hospitals in two states. Participants Consecutive sample of patients who had a new PICC placed during a hospital stay between August 2015 and May 2017. Main outcome(s) Patient-reported signs and symptoms of a possible PICC-related complication or functional issues. Results Of the 438 patients in the analytic cohort (91.4% of those consented), two-thirds were male with a mean age of 56 years. The most common reason for PICC placement was long-term antibiotic therapy (43.4%). During the 70-day follow-up period, 61.4% of patients reported signs of at least one complication, including potentially serious complications, such as bloodstream infection (17.6%) and deep vein thrombosis (30.6%). Correspondence of these reported events with medical record documentation of the complication was generally low. More than one-quarter (27.9%) of patients reported minor complications, such as insertion site redness, discomfort or difficult removal. While the PICC was in place, 26.0% reported restrictions in activities of daily living, 14.4% social activity restrictions and 19.2% had difficulty with flushing or operating the PICC. Conclusion Over 60% of patients report signs or symptoms of a possible complication or adverse effect after PICC placement. Bothersome complications from the patient perspective are clearly more common than those that typically rise to the level of healthcare provider attention or concern. Understanding the patient experience is critical for providing safe and effective care. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education Clinical Learning Environment Review program requires residents to receive training in handoffs, but there is limited information on best practices in implementing handoff training. We hypothesized that a bundled, standardized approach to handoffs during intern orientation would increase trainee comfort, confidence, and knowledge. All incoming internal medicine interns participated in a Care Transitions workshop during orientation that was divided into 3 sections: introduction and handoff videos using the I-PASS handoff tool, small group discussion of case scenarios, and a 1-on-1 handoff simulation with an evaluator. Participants completed pre- and postworkshop surveys. We reviewed handoff documents to assess whether residents continued to report illness severity—a key component of I-PASS—after the intervention. Over 3 years, 225 of 229 (98%) interns completed the preworkshop survey, and 191 (83%) completed the postworkshop survey. Between 2014 and 2016, the number of incoming interns reporting prior training in handoffs during medical school increased from 45% to 63%. Interns' self-reported comfort with providing effective handoffs and self-reported confidence identifying factors essential to an effective verbal handoff (measured on a 5-point Likert scale) improved significantly after the intervention (P <.05 for all questions and years). During 1 year, written handoffs for 28 498 patients were analyzed, and I-PASS illness severity was documented 99.4% of the time. The Care Transitions workshop consistently improved comfort, confidence, and knowledge of interns in performing handoffs and resulted in sustained change in handoff documentation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As part of an institutional effort to develop an atmosphere of communication and encourage mutual appreciation of respective viewpoints, we used a cross-sectional survey to investigate the perceptions of emergency (EM) and internal medicine (IM) residents and faculty, particularly, their attitudes about collaboration, mutual respect, and mistreatment. This cross-sectional survey was administered to the EM and IM faculty and residents of a county, academic hospital with a Level 1 Trauma Center to evaluate each specialty's current perception of professional behavior and observations of unprofessional behavior in order to identify areas for improvement. The survey items were answered using a 5-point Likert scale and was analyzed using the unpaired t-test. A total of 68 residents and faculty completed the survey, 32 (59.4% residents) from EM and 36 (94.4% residents) from IM. Among all EM and IM clinicians, 48.6% felt that there was a culture of clinical collaboration. Approximately half of the respondents (51.5%) felt that the state of professionalism between the two departments was below that of other departments. About 10% (11.8%) of all respondents reported experiencing unprofessional behaviors from the other department at least once a month. Challenges identified by EM faculty and residents included time to consult, recommendations, and disposition. Challenges identified by IM included difficulty contacting EM providers and lack of communication regarding patient's clinical status changes. Both specialties emphasized the importance of improved patient care transitional processes. This study is an important first look at the prevalence of negative attitudes and misperceptions between EM and IM providers. These perspectives can occur due to breakdown of communication and differing expectations. Such asynchronies can cause a toxic workplace environment, diminished performance, and poor patient outcomes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article discusses a graduate medical education's connection of residents to pre-existing hospital committees to increase resident exposure to quality improvement (QI) and patient safety in Great Britain in 2019. Topics covered include using the team model to boost chances of having a resident with flexible clinical obligations, and the resident's evidence-based contribution to residency leadership. Also noted is the thrust for stronger residents' attendance coverage of their committees.