The results come from the Pediatric Cardiac Critical Consortium (PC4), which is part of Cardiac Networks United, funded by The Children’s Heart Foundation
July 6, 2022 – Many experts in the field of pediatric cardiology have considered in-hospital cardiac arrest (IHCA) a largely unavoidable outcome for some children in cardiovascular intensive care units (CICU). A recent quality improvement initiative led by researchers at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center and 14 other hospitals, challenges that notion.
In a study published July 5, 2022 in JAMA Pediatrics, a group of investigators report that implementing a low-technology cardiac arrest prevention (CAP) practice bundle reduced in-hospital cardiac arrest incidence by an average of 30%. The results exceeded a targeted 25% reduction, and the practice changes used can be replicated in any institution, say project leaders Jeffrey Alten, MD, an attending physician at Cincinnati Children’s CICU, and Michael Gaies, MD, medical director of the Acute Care Cardiology Unit at Cincinnati Children’s.
“This project was able to prevent CPR in almost 200 high-risk children during CAP implementation at these 15 hospitals,” says Dr. Alten.
The study reports the results of a quality improvement initiative that was conducted within a collaborative learning network of CICU teams across the Pediatric Cardiac Critical Consortium (PC4), which aims to improve the quality of care to patients with critical pediatric and congenital cardiovascular disease in North America and abroad.
“This study represents the culmination of years of effort by so many within PC4,” says Dr. Gaies, who was the founder and Executive Director of PC4 during the study. “We collaborated with hospitals across the country to collect data and understand variation in performance on IHCA prevention. Leaders from these institutions then came together to improve the quality of care across hospitals.”
PC4 is part of Cardiac Networks United (CNU), a collaborative pediatric and congenital cardiovascular research and improvement network. Formed in 2017, CNU provides infrastructure for discovery and improvement work to participating networks which is scalable to accommodate a diverse group of collaborative partners and data sources.
The Children’s Heart Foundation has committed $1.5 million in funding through 2023 to Cardiac Networks United to improve outcomes for children with congenital heart defects (CHDs).
“We are proud to be one of the primary funders of CNU,” said Gail Roddie-Hamlin, President and CEO of The Children’s Heart Foundation. “Studies and findings like this are making an immediate, life-saving impact in the lives of those born with CHDs– the most common and deadly birth defect in the country.”
Through the collaboration between The Children’s Heart Foundation and Cardiac Networks United, organization leaders strive to make a lasting impact on the lives of patients and families impacted by CHDs.
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About The Children’s Heart Foundation
The Children’s Heart Foundation (CHF) is the country’s leading organization solely dedicated to funding congenital heart defect (CHD) research. The mission of CHF is to advance the diagnosis, treatment, and prevention of CHDs by funding the most promising research. Since 1996, CHF has funded $15 million in CHD research and scientific collaborations.
About Cardiac Networks United
Cardiac Networks United aims to align and integrate efforts across networks in pediatric and congenital heart disease to foster novel science and accelerate translation of discovery to improvements in care. The overall goal of the organization is to improve outcomes for children and families impacted by pediatric and congenital cardiovascular disease, and to maximize return on investment and sustainability for organizations funding and participating in research and quality improvement work. Formed in 2017, Cardiac Networks United is a “networks of networks” providing infrastructure for discovery and improvement work to participating networks which is scalable to accommodate a diverse group of collaborative partners and data sources.
