Rising to the occasion - Institutional standardization and organization of equipment for 'can't intubate, can't oxygenate' (CICO) crisis

Abstract

'Can't intubate, can't oxygenate' (CICO) scenario is a rare anesthesia crisis for which the management has been suboptimal in the past. Inadequacy and disorganization of airway equipment have been identified as one of the latent factors that contribute to the failure of CICO management. We initiated a quality improvement project to review the equipment aspect of CICO management in our department. We revised our emergency front of neck access (FONA) airway equipment based on available evidence and organized the equipment with custom-made CICO kits. The CICO kits could potentially streamline management, and institutionally standardized equipment across all critical care departments. Our approach may serve as a practical guide for implementation of standard practice for CICO management