Volume 32, Nº 5, September and October 2019
DOI: http://www.dx.doi.org/10.5935/2359-4802.20180101
VIEWPOINT
Performance of the Rapid Response Systems in Health Care Improvement: Benefits and Perspectives
Viviane Cordeiro Veiga
Salomón Soriano Ordinola Rojas
Introduction
In the last two decades, the rapid response systems (RRS) have been explored as initiatives to increase the safety of hospitalized patients. The main function is to identify and treat patients at risk, or who are presenting signs of clinical instability, and to prevent adverse events during hospital stay, with a consequent reduction in in-hospital mortality. Every year in the United States, more than 200,000 intrahospital cardiac arrests (CAs) occur, most of which could be avoided.1 RRS are formed by two health care components called the afferent limb and the efferent limb.2 The afferent limb is represented by the health care team in the admission units, responsible for the care of hospitalized patients and trained to activate the afferent limb, when physiological changes that predict adverse events are detected, especially cardiac arrests. The efferent limb is represented by a team of health care professionals, who respond to codes, and may be headed by a physician, a nurse or a physiotherapist. The efferent limb is better known as the rapid response team (RRT). In addition to these health care components, the rapid response systems must also have two other components, namely the administrative arm, which provides the necessary documentation and is responsible for the systems daily activities and the quality and governance arm, which contributes to continuous improvement and reassessment of the system. These systems have been implemented around the globe, but still in a non-uniform way in institutions and health systems with different characteristics. However, in Brazil, there are few reports on this issue.3,4
Keywords: Hospital Rapid Response Team; Patient Safety; Patient Care Team; Hospital Mortality.
