An Enteral Tube Feeding Passport - Improving communication between hospital and home

Quality Improvement Poster Download

Background & Problems

Within Gloucestershire we have on average 450 patients with enteral feeding tubes who are seen each year. Around 310 of these patients are adults and 140 are paediatrics. Often these patients have complex health needs. Due to their complex health needs it is very important that communication between community and hospital staff is as easy as possible to allow for smooth transition of care and to avoid errors caused by miscommunication.

Aim

To create and provide an enteral tube feeding passport to 50% of the adult patients in Gloucestershire by 2019, to help improve communication between hospital and home.

Method

Common concerns and problems were highlighted by endoscopy staff using a survey. A driver diagram was completed to find primary and secondary drivers for the miscommunication and from this change ideas were formulated. From these change ideas an Enteral Tube Feeding Passport was created and has been piloted on 30 patients (1st PDSA cycle) and sent to gastroenterology for comments (2nd PDSA cycle). Following feedback from the pilot and gastroenterology team the passport has been edited ready for launch.

Results

An Enteral Tube feeding passport has been created and is currently in use for 30 patients (10% of the patient group).

Implications

Ongoing from this project it is important to assess and re-evaluate the success of the enteral tube feeding passport by gathering feedback from hospital staff and patients. The aim now is to ensure the passport is launched across all of the adult tube fed patients by June 2019 to allow a robust trial of its effectiveness.