Failure to rescue in neonatal care

Area of Science:

• Neonatal Intensive Care Nursing
• Patient Safety
• Healthcare Quality Improvement

Background:

• Failure to rescue (FTR) is a measure of nursing quality, typically applied in perinatal care.
• Nurses' bedside presence is vital for recognizing and responding to infant clinical deterioration.
• FTR has not been widely adopted as a nursing quality measure in neonatal intensive care units (NICUs).

Purpose of the Study:

• To establish the relevance of Failure to Rescue (FTR) in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) setting.
• To identify nursing-specific actions that contribute to successful patient rescue.
• To outline system-level interventions that support nurses in rescuing vulnerable neonatal patients.

Main Methods:

• Review of existing literature on Failure to Rescue (FTR) in critical care.
• Analysis of nursing roles and responsibilities in recognizing and managing infant complications.
• Exploration of system factors influencing nursing effectiveness in emergency situations.

Main Results:

• Nurses are uniquely positioned to detect early signs of patient decline in the NICU.
• Effective rescue requires a combination of skilled nursing interventions and supportive healthcare systems.
• System-related factors significantly impact nurses' ability to rescue patients.

Conclusions:

• Failure to Rescue (FTR) is a relevant and applicable quality measure for NICU nursing.
• Implementing FTR in NICUs necessitates addressing both nursing practices and systemic issues.
• Focusing on FTR can improve the quality of care and outcomes for critically ill infants.