Translating venous thromboembolism (VTE) prevention evidence into practice: a multidisciplinary evidence...

Area of Science:

• Healthcare Improvement
• Patient Safety
• Clinical Practice Guidelines

Background:

• Venous thromboembolism (VTE) poses a significant risk to hospitalized patients, leading to mortality, morbidity, and increased healthcare costs.
• Despite available guidelines, VTE prophylaxis compliance was suboptimal, affecting only 49% of patients prior to the intervention.

Purpose of the Study:

• To enhance healthcare professionals' adherence to evidence-based guidelines for preventing VTE in hospitalized individuals.
• To implement and evaluate a practice improvement methodology aimed at overcoming barriers to VTE guideline uptake.

Main Methods:

• A practice improvement methodology was utilized, incorporating pre- and post-intervention audits to assess performance.
• Key strategies included audit and feedback, documentation aids, staff education, policy development, and reminder systems.
• The study was conducted over one year in a 250-bed acute-care hospital in Sydney, Australia.

Main Results:

• Appropriate VTE prophylaxis increased by 19%, from 49% to 68% (p=0.02).
• Surgical patient prophylaxis improved by 21% (61% to 82%), while medical patient prophylaxis increased by 26% (19% to 45%).
• Documented VTE risk assessments rose significantly from 0% to 35% (p < 0.001).

Conclusions:

• The intervention successfully improved VTE prophylaxis rates by 19%, demonstrating the effectiveness of behavioral change strategies.
• A notable disparity persists between VTE prophylaxis rates for surgical and medical patients, necessitating targeted interventions.