Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jan 1, 2026
Transcutaneous Microcirculatory Imaging in Preterm Neonates
Published on: December 31, 2015
Decreasing radiographs in neonates through targeted quality improvement interventions
Patrick Motz1, Julie Do1, Teresa Lam1
1University of Washington School of Medicine, Seattle, WA, USA.
Objective:
Our aim was to decrease radiograph use for monitoring placement of peripherally inserted central catheters (PICC) and endotracheal tubes (ETT) in neonates admitted to the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) by 20% from November 2017 to November 2018.
Study Design:
We carried out three Plan-Do-Study-Act (PDSA) cycles: (1) implementation of a radiograph protocol emphasizing ideal patient positioning, standard radiograph views and frequency, (2) standardizing ETT depth using the NRP guidelines, and (3) implementation of an institution specific ETT depth guideline.
Results:
The pre-intervention radiographs per PICC day was 0.86 versus a post-intervention value of 0.46 (P = 0.004). The pre-intervention radiographs per ETT day was 1.45 versus a post-intervention value of 1.07 (P = 0.002).
Conclusions:
Our multidisciplinary NICU team performed a QI project, which resulted in more than a 20% decrease in the number of radiographs used for monitoring placement of PICCs and ETTs.
