The QI project team led by Jay Lamba, MD, PhD, and Hillary Spangler, MD, is highlighting clinical champions who are frequently using the Deterioration Index Score in EPIC to critically evaluate the health needs of their patients.
The Deterioration Index (DI) Score in EPIC is a computerized clinical acuity score used for prediction of decompensation events. When monitored and communicated effectively, it can save lives. The MPCU and Rapid Response Team have piloted use of the DI Score during the past year. Learn first-hand how a DI Score “champion” is effectively using this tool.
The first feature is of Julia Andrade, an MPCU nurse:
Q: What do you find helpful about reviewing a patient’s DI score?
A: I find it helpful to just overall track our patients current health status while also trend what direction their health is going, and why it might be deteriorating. The DI score includes a lot of factors that help calculate and determine a patients DI score and therefore its helpful to us as staff cause now we have a better understanding of the patients overall picture and the steps we need to take in order to improve their health status!
Q: How easy or difficult is it for you to review a patient’s DI score?
A: It is super easy to review the patient’s DI score. There are numerous ways to access and see the score, and there is even a way to wrench it in to your patient list and therefore can view it just about whenever you log onto EPIC, and you can also see the last time it was been reviewed as well in a matter of seconds!
Q: Do you have an example of where reviewing a patient’s DI score alerted you to the need for an intervention?
A: There have been a handful of times where there has been an increase in the patient’s DI score that alerted myself or staff members and it allowed me to look at the data in front of me and also helped me to have a more focused assessment on my patients. It encouraged utilization of rapid response nurse consults or even just a page to the MD to raise an acute concern about my patient, and more often than not there was an intervention that needed to be taken by the healthcare staff in order to maintain patient safety and ultimately help improve the health status of the patient.
Please reach out to Jay Lamba MD, PhD, or Hillary Spangler, MD, with questions or suggestions for another DI Score champion.