Study supports nurse activation of rapid response teams

Empowering bedside nurses to activate rapid response teams is one of several practices that characterize hospitals with the best outcomes for in-hospital cardiac arrest. Researchers at the University of Iowa interviewed staff at nine institutions participating in the American Heart Association’s Get With the Guidelines–Resuscitation program. The study, published in JAMA Internal Medicine, found hospitals with the best cardiac-arrest survival rates had dedicated staff without other clinical responsibilities on their rapid response teams. The teams also engaged in cardiac risk surveillance and collaborated with nurses during and after a rapid response. (Cardiology Today story, 7/29/19)