Tools of the trade

The revision of the EYFS should be seen as an opportunity to consider your current practice. Audit your existing provision: what are you already doing well that supports children's learning and development, what is working and should be retained and what could be improved?

Perioperative antimicrobial prophylaxis in adult patients: The first multicenter clinical practice audit with intervention in Greek surgical departments

Objective: To audit clinical practice and implement an intervention to promote appropriate use of perioperative antimicrobial prophylaxis (PAP). Design: Prospective multicenter before-and-after study. Setting: This study was conducted in 7 surgical departments of 3 major Greek hospitals. Methods: Active PAP surveillance in adults undergoing elective surgical procedures was performed before and after implementation of a multimodal intervention. The surveillance monitored use of appropriate antimicrobial agent according to international and local guidelines, appropriate timing and duration of PAP, overall compliance with all 3 parameters and the occurrence of surgical site infections (SSIs). The intervention included education, audit, and feedback. Results: Overall, 1,447 patients were included: 768 before and 679 after intervention. Overall compliance increased from 28.2% to 43.9% (P = .001). Use of antimicrobial agents compliant to international guidelines increased from 89.6% to 96.3% (P = .001). In 4 of 7 departments, compliance with appropriate timing was already >90%; an increase from 44.3% to 73% (P = .001) and from 20.4% to 60% (P = .001), respectively, was achieved in 2 other departments, whereas a decrease from 64.1% to 10.9% (P = .001) was observed in 1 department. All but one department achieved a shorter PAP duration, and most achieved duration of ~2 days. SSIs significantly decreased from 6.9% to 4% (P = .026). After the intervention, it was 2.3 times more likely for appropriate antimicrobial use, 14.7 times more likely to administer an antimicrobial for the appropriate duration and 5.3 times more likely to administer an overall appropriate PAP. Conclusion: An intervention based on education, audit, and feedback can significantly contribute to improvement of appropriate PAP administration; further improvement in duration is needed.

Change in Initial Tympanostomy Tube Placement Timing Yields Decreased Burden of Care Without Increased Complications in Patients With Cleft Lip and Palate

Objective: To report a practice audit of the consequences of a change in protocol in the timing of placement of tympanostomy tubes in infants with cleft lip and palate. Participants: All children with a diagnosis of cleft lip and palate, treated between November 1998 and May 2006 under the old protocol, and between December 2012 and July 2016 under a new protocol. Under the old protocol, tympanostomy tubes were first inserted at the time of lip repair at around age 2 months. Under the new protocol, tympanostomy tubes were deferred until the time of palate repair around the age of 9 months. Children with syndromic diagnoses other than Stickler syndrome and Van der Woude syndrome, and children who failed newborn hearing screen were excluded. Main Outcome Measures: Incidence of otorrhea from birth to 6 months after palate repair and presence of hearing loss at ages 1 and 2. Results: Deferral of tympanostomy tubes until the time of palate repair decreases the burden of care due to otorrhea as compared to early tympanostomy tubes at the time of lip repair. There was no significant difference in the incidence of hearing thresholds at or below 15 dB at age 1 or 2. Conclusions: Placement of tympanostomy tubes at the time of palate repair balances the goals of minimizing the adverse effects from middle ear effusion and minimizing the burden of care on our patients and their families.