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The impact of a surgical risk calculator to prevent postoperative complications
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Winkels, Erin. The impact of a surgical risk calculator to prevent postoperative complications. Retrieved from https://doi.org/doi:10.7282/t3-h3gk-f372

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TitleThe impact of a surgical risk calculator to prevent postoperative complications
NameWinkels, Erin (author); Niedz, Barbara (chair); Arvanitis, Michael (member); Rutgers University; RBHS School of Nursing
Date Created2021
Other Date2021-10 (degree)
SubjectNursing, Postoperative complications, Readmissions, SRC
Extent1 online resource (49 pages)
DescriptionPurpose of the Project
All surgeries hold a certain amount of risk that surgeons and patients weigh against the benefit of the surgery. This includes postoperative complications, especially within the first 30 days of the procedure. A risk calculator provides an objective surgical risk score. The National Surgeon Quality Improvement Program (NSQIP) Surgical Risk Calculator (SRC) is a validated tool that predicts 30-day postoperative complications. The project’s goal was to evaluate the impact of the NSQIP SRC on postoperative complications when completed prior to surgery.
Methodology
This was a retrospective quality improvement project to evaluate the incidence of postoperative complications pre and postimplementation of the SRC. Complications included unplanned 30-day readmissions and Patient Safety Indicators (PSI’s). A total of 684 general surgical cases on those 18 years and older were included. Chi Square tests were used to evaluate any association between readmission pre and post-implementation. A Chi Square was also used to evaluate the association of the patients calculated risk and unplanned 30-day readmissions. Last, Chi Square tests was used to review any association between the NSQIP calculated risk compared to the surgeons' anticipated patient risk.
Results
Chi Square Tests evaluated any association between readmissions pre and post-implementation of the SRC. There was a decrease in readmissions from 8 pre-implementation to 3 post-implementation. Although there was a decrease in number of readmissions, there was no significant association between readmission and the use of the NSQIP SRC. While the highest percentage of patients who were readmitted within 30 days were patient's who scored higher than average risk for complications (36.4%), the Chi Square test did not find an association between the calculated risk score to unplanned 30-day readmissions. Feedback received from the surgeons also showed an association with the SRC calculated risk and their anticipated risk.
Implications for Practice
Many unforeseen barriers and obstacles occurred during this project due to Covid-19 and its impact on elective surgical cases and the project’s timeframe. It was concluded that the surgical risk scores were received well by most surgeons, and it would be beneficial to expand the use of it to other surgical specialties.
NoteD.N.P.
NoteIncludes bibliographical references
Genretheses
Persistent URLhttps://doi.org/doi:10.7282/t3-h3gk-f372
LanguageEnglish
CollectionSchool of Nursing (RBHS) DNP Projects
Organization NameRutgers, The State University of New Jersey
RightsThe author owns the copyright to this work.
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