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Learning Objective 1: identify the components of an evidence-based implementation process for a venous thromboembolism risk screening and prevention program.
Learning Objective 2: describe the types of collaborative efforts used with health, evidence-based, and computer experts, hospital interdisciplinary teams, and hospital nurses in completing this implementation.
Venous thromboembolism (VTE) is one of the most prevalent of all preventable causes of hospital related deaths. The purpose of this project was to collaborate in the development and implementation of a VTE risk screening process to decrease the number of hospital-acquired deaths related to VTE. Good Samaritan Hospital, which provides specialty care to over 350,000 rural residents of central Nebraska and northern Kansas, and serves as a leader to critical access hospitals, has customized a risk screening tool and protocol for prophylaxis treatment of VTE based on the American College of Chest Physicians Evidence-Based Clinical Practice Guidelines (8th Edition). Serving as nursing representatives to an interdisciplinary team, the authors incorporated essential elements needed for EBP implementation into the collection and analysis of the evidence, collaboration with in-house personnel and external resources for VTE risk screening tool and policy formation, education and motivation of nurses, and pilot testing of the implementation. The in-house collaboration process included physicians, pharmacists, nurses, information technologists, risk management, and suppliers. The development of a interdisciplinary anticoagulation team proved to be beneficial for the development of policy, purchasing of additional supplies, and the development of computer documentation. The pilot testing yielded new input from staff nurses, which was integrated into a revised protocol and documentation. The authors have shared our hospital’s process of VTE risk screening and protocols with the critical access hospitals via telemedicine. Ongoing evaluation is being completed to monitor the degree of compliance with the policy and incidence of hospital-acquired VTE.