References
The importance of the team in small animal CPR
Abstract
This review draws on evidence from human medicine to assess the team factors most relevant to small animal cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR). It is increasingly being recognised that leadership, team building, communication and situational awareness all impact both the team's experience and clinical outcomes. Leadership training, nurse-led teams, debriefing, closed-loop communication and cognitive aids have all been shown to improve CPR performance and thus deserve consideration alongside the practical elements of arrest and resuscitation. There is limited primary evidence to support this claim in veterinary medicine. However, the mental models underpinning clinical human factors are largely seen as transferable, with veterinary governing bodies supporting their inclusion in practice culture and training.
Cardiopulmonary arrest results in death without immediate intervention (Hoehne et al, 2023). Cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) promotes a return of spontaneous circulation for the patient (Dazio et al, 2023). It has been shown that survival to discharge in small animals is approximately 5% (McIntyre et al, 2014). In contrast, human hospitals are believed to discharge around 25% of patients following in-hospital cardiac arrest (Andersen et al, 2019). The reasons for this difference are multifaceted; however, it may be sensible to look to the human medical field when suggesting improvements to current CPR training. CPR human factors are an emergent focus in human CPR, and include leadership, psychological safety, situational awareness, debriefing and communication. It is believed that if these principles are examined within the veterinary field, small animal CPR can improve both in patient outcomes and team experience.
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