ORCID Profile
0000-0001-8467-1466
Current Organisation
University of Leeds
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Publisher: BMJ
Date: 12-09-2019
DOI: 10.1136/BMJQS-2019-009537
Abstract: A clinical trial in 93 National Health Service hospitals evaluated a quality improvement programme for emergency abdominal surgery, designed to improve mortality by improving the patient care pathway. Large variation was observed in implementation approaches, and the main trial result showed no mortality reduction. Our objective therefore was to evaluate whether trial participation led to care pathway implementation and to study the relationship between care pathway implementation and use of six recommended implementation strategies. We performed a hospital-level time-series analysis using data from the Enhanced Peri-Operative Care for High-risk patients trial. Care pathway implementation was defined as achievement of % median reliability in 10 measured care processes. Mean monthly process performance was plotted on run charts. Process improvement was defined as an observed run chart signal, using probability-based ‘shift’ and ‘runs’ rules. A new median performance level was calculated after an observed signal. Of 93 participating hospitals, 80 provided sufficient data for analysis, generating 800 process measure charts from 20 305 patient admissions over 27 months. No hospital reliably implemented all 10 processes. Overall, only 279 of the 800 processes were improved (3 (2–5) per hospital) and 14/80 hospitals improved more than six processes. Mortality risk documented (57/80 (71%)), lactate measurement (42/80 (53%)) and cardiac output guided fluid therapy (32/80 (40%)) were most frequently improved. Consultant-led decision making (14/80 (18%)), consultant review before surgery (17/80 (21%)) and time to surgery (14/80 (18%)) were least frequently improved. In hospitals using ≥5 implementation strategies, 9/30 (30%) hospitals improved ≥6 care processes compared with 0/11 hospitals using ≤2 implementation strategies. Only a small number of hospitals improved more than half of the measured care processes, more often when at least five of six implementation strategies were used. In a longer term project, this understanding may have allowed us to adapt the intervention to be effective in more hospitals.
Publisher: BMJ
Date: 28-05-1994
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 06-2019
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 07-2018
DOI: 10.1016/J.BJA.2018.03.020
Abstract: The Standardising Endpoints for Perioperative Medicine group was established to derive an appropriate set of endpoints for use in clinical trials related to anaesthesia and perioperative medicine. Anaesthetic or analgesic technique during cancer surgery with curative intent may influence the risk of recurrence or metastasis. However, given the current equipoise in the existing literature, prospective, randomised, controlled trials are necessary to test this hypothesis. As such, a cancer subgroup was formed to derive endpoints related to research in onco-anaesthesia based on a current evidence base, international consensus and expert guidance. We undertook a systematic review to identify measures of oncological outcome used in the oncological, surgical, and wider literature. A multiround Delphi consensus process that included up to 89 clinician-researchers was then used to refine a recommended list of endpoints. We identified 90 studies in a literature search, which were the basis for a preliminary list of nine outcome measures and their definitions. A further two were added during the Delphi process. Response rates for Delphi rounds one, two, and three were 88% (n=9), 82% (n=73), and 100% (n=10), respectively. A final list of 10 defined endpoints was refined and developed, of which six secured approval by ≥70% of the group: cancer health related quality of life, days alive and out of hospital at 90 days, time to tumour progression, disease-free survival, cancer-specific survival, and overall survival (and 5-yr overall survival). Standardised endpoints in clinical outcomes studies will support benchmarking and pooling (meta-analysis) of trials. It is therefore recommended that one or more of these consensus-derived endpoints should be considered for inclusion in clinical trials evaluating a causal effect of anaesthesia-analgesia technique on oncological outcomes.
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 20-04-2006
DOI: 10.1111/J.1365-2559.2006.02394.X
Abstract: To test the effectiveness of a teaching resource (a decision tree with diagnostic criteria based on published literature) in improving the proficiency of Gleason grading of prostatic cancer by general pathologists. A decision tree with diagnostic criteria was developed by a panel of urological pathologists during a reproducibility study. Twenty-four general histopathologists tested this teaching resource. Twenty slides were selected to include a range of Gleason score groups 2-4, 5-6, 7 and 8-10. Interobserver agreement was studied before and after a presentation of the decision tree and criteria. The results were compared with those of the panel of urological pathologists. Before the teaching session, 83% of readings agreed within +/- 1 of the panel's consensus scores. Interobserver agreement was low (kappa = 0.33) compared with that for the panel (kappa = 0.62). After the presentation, 90% of readings agreed within +/- 1 of the panel's consensus scores and interobserver agreement amongst the pathologists increased to kappa = 0.41. Most improvement in agreement was seen for the Gleason score group 5-6. The lower level of agreement among general pathologists highlights the need to improve observer reproducibility. Improvement associated with a single training session is likely to be limited. Additional strategies include external quality assurance and second opinion within cancer networks.
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 12-2008
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 2021
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 04-2019
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 05-2018
DOI: 10.1016/J.BJA.2018.02.007
Abstract: There is a need for robust, clearly defined, patient-relevant outcome measures for use in randomised trials in perioperative medicine. Our objective was to establish standard outcome measures for postoperative pulmonary complications research. A systematic literature search was conducted using MEDLINE, Web of Science, SciELO, and the Korean Journal Database. Definitions were extracted from included manuscripts. We then conducted a three-stage Delphi consensus process to select the optimal outcome measures in terms of methodological quality and overall suitability for perioperative trials. From 2358 records, the full texts of 81 manuscripts were retrieved, of which 45 met the inclusion criteria. We identified three main categories of outcome measure specific to perioperative pulmonary outcomes: (i) composite outcome measures of multiple pulmonary outcomes (27 definitions) (ii) pneumonia (12 definitions) and (iii) respiratory failure (six definitions). These were rated by the group according to suitability for routine use. The majority of definitions were given a low score, and many were imprecise, difficult to apply consistently, or both, in large patient populations. A small number of highly rated definitions were identified as appropriate for widespread use. The group then recommended four outcome measures for future use, including one new definition. A large number of postoperative pulmonary outcome measures have been used, but most are poorly defined. Our four recommended outcome measures include a new definition of postoperative pulmonary complications, incorporating an assessment of severity. These definitions will meet the needs of most clinical effectiveness trials of treatments to improve postoperative pulmonary outcomes.
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 05-2016
DOI: 10.1093/BJA/AEW066
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 07-2017
DOI: 10.1093/BJA/AEX164
Abstract: Elevated preoperative heart rate (HR) is associated with perioperative myocardial injury and death. In apparently healthy in iduals, high resting HR is associated with development of cardiac failure. Given that patients with overt cardiac failure have poor perioperative outcomes, we hypothesized that subclinical cardiac failure, identified by cardiopulmonary exercise testing, was associated with elevated preoperative HR > 87 beats min -1 (HR > 87). This was a secondary analysis of an observational cohort study of surgical patients aged ≥45 yr. The exposure of interest was HR > 87, recorded at rest before preoperative cardiopulmonary exercise testing. The predefined outcome measures were the following established predictors of mortality in patients with overt cardiac failure in the general population: ventilatory equivalent for carbon dioxide ( V˙E/V˙co2 ) ratio ≥34, heart rate recovery ≤6 and peak oxygen uptake ( V˙o2 ) ≤14 ml kg -1 min -1 . We used logistic regression analysis to test for association between HR > 87 and markers of cardiac failure. We also examined the relationship between HR > 87 and preoperative left ventricular stroke volume in a separate cohort of patients. HR > 87 was present in 399/1250 (32%) patients, of whom 438/1250 (35%) had V˙E/V˙co2 ratio ≥34, 200/1250 (16%) had heart rate recovery ≤6, and 396/1250 (32%) had peak V˙o2 ≤14 ml kg -1 min -1 . HR > 87 was independently associated with peak V˙o2 ≤14 ml kg -1 min -1 {odds ratio (OR) 1.69 [1.12-3.55] P =0.01} and heart rate recovery ≤6 (OR 2.02 [1.30-3.14] P 87 was not associated with V˙E/V˙co2 ratio ≥34 (OR 1.31 [0.92-1.87] P =0.14). In a separate cohort, HR > 87 (33/181 18.5%) was associated with impaired preoperative stroke volume (OR 3.21 [1.26-8.20] P =0.01). Elevated preoperative heart rate is associated with impaired cardiopulmonary performance consistent with clinically unsuspected, subclinical cardiac failure. ISRCTN88456378.
Location: United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland
No related grants have been discovered for Simon Howell.