Antimicrobial stewardship activities in hospitals in Ireland and the United Kingdom: a comparison of two national surveys.

Best practice guidelines recommend that a multidisciplinary Antimicrobial Management Team (AMT) conduct antimicrobial stewardship (AMS) activities in hospitals. In order to continuously improve AMS activities in Irish hospitals it is important to benchmark performance by comparison with other countries. The purpose of this study was to compare the membership of AMTs and AMS activities conducted in Irish and United Kingdom (UK) hospitals. The research used a postal questionnaire to determine the membership and activities of AMTs, which was issued to the specialist antimicrobial pharmacist or pharmacist in charge at all Irish Hospitals and all UK National Health Service Hospitals. The membership of AMTs and the extent of AMS activities conducted were compared between the countries. The response rates to the surveys were 73% (n = 51) in Ireland and 33% in the UK (n = 273). 57% of Irish respondents reported having an AMT compared to 82% in the UK (p < 0.001). Significantly more AMTs in the UK had a specialist antimicrobial pharmacist on the team (95% UK, 69% Ireland, p < 0.001). A higher proportion of Irish respondents reported measuring the overall volume of antimicrobial prescribing (Ireland 85%, UK 72%, p = 0.057). A higher proportion of UK respondents reported measuring the appropriateness of antimicrobial prescribing (76% UK, 58% Ireland, p = 0.019) and the appropriateness of restricted antimicrobial prescribing (64% UK, 52% Ireland, p = 0.140). In conclusion, Irish and UK AMTs need to be supported to recruit and retain specialist antimicrobial pharmacists and to achieve higher rates of audit, prescription appropriateness review and feedback activities

Human factors and patient safety in undergraduate healthcare education : A systematic review

Peer reviewedPublisher PD

A qualitative process evaluation of the introduction of procalcitonin testing as an antimicrobial stewardship intervention

Background Successful antimicrobial stewardship interventions are imperative in today’s environment of antimicrobial resistance. New antimicrobial stewardship interventions should include qualitative analysis such as a process evaluation to determine which elements within an intervention are effective and provide insight into the context in which the intervention is introduced. Objective To assess the implementation process and explore the contextual factors which influenced implementation. Setting An academic teaching hospital in Cork, Ireland. Methods A process evaluation was conducted on completion of a feasibility study of the introduction of a procalcitonin antimicrobial stewardship intervention. The process evaluation consisted of semi-structured face-to-face interviews of key stakeholders including participating (senior) doctors (5), medical laboratory scientists (3) and a hospital administrator. The Consolidated Framework for Implementation Research was used to guide data collection, analysis, and interpretation. Main outcome measures Qualitative assessment of the intervention implementation process, the contextual factors which influenced implementation and identification of improvements to the intervention and its implementation and determine if proceeding to a randomised controlled trial would be appropriate. Results Analysis of the interviews identified three main themes. (1) The procalcitonin intervention and implementation process was viewed positively to support prescribing decisions. Participants identified modifications to procalcitonin processing and availability to improve implementation and allow procalcitonin to be “more of a clinical influence”. (2) In the antimicrobial stewardship context the concept of fear of missing an infection and risks of potentially serious outcomes for patients emerged. (3) The hospital context consisted of barriers such as available resources and facilitators including the hospital culture of quality improvement. Conclusion This process evaluation provides a detailed analysis of the implementation of procalcitonin testing as an antimicrobial stewardship intervention. The positive findings of this process evaluation and feasibility study should be built upon and a full randomised controlled trial and economic evaluation should be conducted in a variety of hospital settings to confirm the effectiveness of procalcitonin as an antimicrobial stewardship intervention

The effectiveness of Advance Care Planning (ACP) training for care home staff: an updated systematic review

Context: Population ageing and projections that more people will die in care homes demand that care home staff are prepared for advance care planning (ACP). This is an update of a prior review, published in 2021, of ACP education interventions for healthcare professionals in care homes. Objective: We sought to address the questions: (1) What ACP education interventions exist for care home staff? and (2) How effective are these interventions? Method: The review adheres to PRISMA; PROSPERO (ID: CRD42022337865). Original research evaluating ACP education for care home staff, reporting any measurable outcome of effectiveness, was included. Extensive literature searches were performed from March 2018 to June 2022. The results were reported by narrative synthesis. Findings: We identified 10 studies (310 care homes), from the UK, Belgium, Norway and Canada. Major sources of heterogeneity between studies include intervention design, target population and outcome measure. More recent interventions target the wider multi-disciplinary team. There is a trend towards the adoption of more resident/family and staff-related outcomes. There was insufficient evidence to draw conclusions about the effectiveness of ACP education interventions. Limitations: Heterogeneity of the primary studies did not allow for meta-analysis. Implications: There is still insufficient data to determine the effectiveness of ACP education interventions for care home staff. Future researchers should aim to agree on outcomes that are specific to ACP education interventions for care home staff and develop standardised, validated outcome measures. Study design should consider an intervention’s ‘theory of change’ when considering outcomes

Acceptability of microneedle-patch vaccines: A qualitative analysis of the opinions of parents

Vaccines incorporated into microneedle-based patch platforms offer advantages over conventional hypodermic injections. However, the success and clinical utility of these platforms will depend on its acceptance among stakeholders. Minimal focus has been placed on determining parents' acceptability of microneedle-patch vaccines intended for paediatric use. This qualitative study probes the perceived acceptability of microneedle technology for paediatric vaccination in a parent population. Focus groups (n=6) were convened through purposive sampling of Cork city primary schools. Discussions were audio-recorded, transcribed verbatim, anonymised, independently verified and analysed by thematic analysis, with constant comparison method applied throughout. The opinions of 32 parents were included. All participants declared that their children were fully vaccinated. Five core themes were identified and defined as: (i) concern, (ii) suitability for paediatric use, (iii) potential for parental administration, (iv) the role of the healthcare professional and (v) special populations. Drivers for acceptance include; concerns with current vaccines and vaccination programmes; attributes of microneedle-patch (reduced pain, bleeding, fear and increased convenience) and endorsement by a healthcare professional. Barriers to acceptance include; lack of familiarity, concerns regarding feasibility and suitability in paediatrics, allergic potential, inability to confirm delivery and potential reduction in vaccine coverage. This is the first study to explore parental acceptance of microneedle-patch vaccines. Capturing the opinions of parents, the ultimate decision makers in paediatric vaccination, is crucial in the understanding of the eventual uptake of microneedle technology and therefore adds to literature currently available. This study has revealed that even "vaccine-acceptors"; parents who agree with, or do not question vaccination, will question the safety and efficacy of this novel method. Participants in this study remained tentative. However, the study has also revealed that endorsement by healthcare professionals could reduce this tentativeness, thereby identifying the role of healthcare professionals in disseminating information and providing support to parents. An increased awareness of developments in microneedle technology is needed to permit informed decision-making by parents

Aspirin compared to enoxaparin or rivaroxaban for thromboprophylaxis following hip and knee replacement.

Background:The risk of venous thromboembolism following major orthopaedic surgery is among the highest for all surgical specialties. Our hospital guidelines for thromboprophylaxis following elective primary total hip or knee replacement are based on American College of Chest Physicians guidance. The most recent change to local guidelines was the introduction of the extended aspirin regimen as standard thromboprophylaxis. Objective: To establish the appropriateness of this regimen by comparing venous thromboembolism rates in patients receiving extended aspirin to previous regimens. Setting The largest dedicated orthopaedic hospital in Ireland. Methods: This was a retrospective cohort study. Data were collected from patient record software. All eligible patients undergoing primary total hip or knee replacement between 1st January 2010 and 30th June 2016 were included. Main outcome measure Venous thromboembolism up to 6 months post-operatively. Results Of the 6548 participants (55.3% female, mean age 65.4 years (± 11.8 years, 55.8% underwent total hip replacement), venous thromboembolism occurred in 65 (0.99%). Venous thromboembolism rate in both the inpatient enoxaparin group (n = 961) and extended aspirin group (n = 3460) was 1.04% and was 0.66% in the modified rivaroxaban group (n = 1212). Non-inferiority analysis showed the extended aspirin regimen to be equivalent to the modified rivaroxaban regimen. History of venous thromboembolism was the only significant demographic risk factor for post-operative venous thromboembolism (0.87% vs. 3.54%, p  = 0.0002). Conclusion: In daily clinical practice, extended aspirin regimen is at least as effective as modified rivaroxaban for preventing clinically important venous thromboembolism among patients undergoing hip or knee arthroplasty who are discharged from the hospital without complications. Aspirin can be considered a safe and effective agent in the prevention of venous thromboembolism after total hip or total knee replacement

An investigation of the effects of procalcitonin testing on antimicrobial prescribing in respiratory tract infections in an Irish university hospital setting: a feasibility study

Background: Diagnostic uncertainty and a high prevalence of viral infections present unique challenges for antimicrobial prescribing for respiratory tract infections (RTIs). Procalcitonin (PCT) has been shown to support prescribing decisions and reduce antimicrobial use safely in patients with RTIs, but recent study results have been variable. Methods: We conducted a feasibility study of the introduction of PCT testing in patients admitted to hospital with a lower RTI to determine if PCT testing is an effective and worthwhile intervention to introduce to support the existing antimicrobial stewardship (AMS) programme and safely decrease antimicrobial prescribing in patients admitted with RTIs. Results: A total of 79 patients were randomized to the intervention PCT-guided treatment group and 40 patients to the standard care respiratory control group. The addition of PCT testing led to a significant decrease in duration of antimicrobial prescriptions (mean 6.8 versus 8.9 days, P"0.012) and decreased length of hospital stay (median 7 versus 8 days, P"0.009) between the PCT and respiratory control group. PCT did not demonstrate a significant reduction in antimicrobial consumption when measured as DDDs and days of therapy. Conclusions: PCT testing had a positive effect on antimicrobial prescribing during this feasibility study. The successful implementation of PCT testing in a randomized controlled trial requires an ongoing comprehensive education programme, greater integration into the AMS programme and delivery of PCT results in a timely manner. This feasibility study has shown that a larger randomized controlled trial would be beneficial to further explore the positive aspects of these findings

Albiglutide and cardiovascular outcomes in patients with type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease (Harmony Outcomes): a double-blind, randomised placebo-controlled trial

Background: Glucagon-like peptide 1 receptor agonists differ in chemical structure, duration of action, and in their effects on clinical outcomes. The cardiovascular effects of once-weekly albiglutide in type 2 diabetes are unknown. We aimed to determine the safety and efficacy of albiglutide in preventing cardiovascular death, myocardial infarction, or stroke. Methods: We did a double-blind, randomised, placebo-controlled trial in 610 sites across 28 countries. We randomly assigned patients aged 40 years and older with type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease (at a 1:1 ratio) to groups that either received a subcutaneous injection of albiglutide (30–50 mg, based on glycaemic response and tolerability) or of a matched volume of placebo once a week, in addition to their standard care. Investigators used an interactive voice or web response system to obtain treatment assignment, and patients and all study investigators were masked to their treatment allocation. We hypothesised that albiglutide would be non-inferior to placebo for the primary outcome of the first occurrence of cardiovascular death, myocardial infarction, or stroke, which was assessed in the intention-to-treat population. If non-inferiority was confirmed by an upper limit of the 95% CI for a hazard ratio of less than 1·30, closed testing for superiority was prespecified. This study is registered with ClinicalTrials.gov, number NCT02465515. Findings: Patients were screened between July 1, 2015, and Nov 24, 2016. 10 793 patients were screened and 9463 participants were enrolled and randomly assigned to groups: 4731 patients were assigned to receive albiglutide and 4732 patients to receive placebo. On Nov 8, 2017, it was determined that 611 primary endpoints and a median follow-up of at least 1·5 years had accrued, and participants returned for a final visit and discontinuation from study treatment; the last patient visit was on March 12, 2018. These 9463 patients, the intention-to-treat population, were evaluated for a median duration of 1·6 years and were assessed for the primary outcome. The primary composite outcome occurred in 338 (7%) of 4731 patients at an incidence rate of 4·6 events per 100 person-years in the albiglutide group and in 428 (9%) of 4732 patients at an incidence rate of 5·9 events per 100 person-years in the placebo group (hazard ratio 0·78, 95% CI 0·68–0·90), which indicated that albiglutide was superior to placebo (p&lt;0·0001 for non-inferiority; p=0·0006 for superiority). The incidence of acute pancreatitis (ten patients in the albiglutide group and seven patients in the placebo group), pancreatic cancer (six patients in the albiglutide group and five patients in the placebo group), medullary thyroid carcinoma (zero patients in both groups), and other serious adverse events did not differ between the two groups. There were three (&lt;1%) deaths in the placebo group that were assessed by investigators, who were masked to study drug assignment, to be treatment-related and two (&lt;1%) deaths in the albiglutide group. Interpretation: In patients with type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease, albiglutide was superior to placebo with respect to major adverse cardiovascular events. Evidence-based glucagon-like peptide 1 receptor agonists should therefore be considered as part of a comprehensive strategy to reduce the risk of cardiovascular events in patients with type 2 diabetes. Funding: GlaxoSmithKline