Missouri Baptist Hospital
St. Louis, Missouri, USA
This tool is used to document key information about an individual Rapid Response Team call in order to understand outcomes, analyze processes, and provide feedback to staff. A designated member of the Rapid Response Team fills out the record during the event and adds follow-up data shortly thereafter. Some organizations have found that organizing the information using the SBAR (Situation, Background, Assessment, Recommendation) structure enhances communication among team members. Organizations are encouraged to customize this tool to meet their local requirements and standards.
Background
A Rapid Response Team — known by some as the Medical Emergency Team (MET) — is a team of clinicians who bring critical care expertise to the patient bedside (or wherever it is needed).
This tool was developed by the Rapid Response Team members as a mechanism to document, analyze, and share important information, including why the Rapid Response Team was called, what interventions took place, and what patient outcome was achieved.
Organizations can use this tool to evaluate the effectiveness of the Rapid Response Team and to educate the nursing staff. At Missouri Baptist Medical Center, a copy of the Rapid Response Team Record is sent to the Performance Improvement Coordinator after each call and the data is entered into a spreadsheet. Nursing Managers receive copies of the Records for their nursing units on a weekly basis and use them to debrief each Rapid Response Team call with their nursing staff. They discuss types of Rapid Response Team calls, interventions, outcomes, and transfers to higher levels of care, with a goal of continuous improvement and learning. Missouri Baptist Medical Center has used this form for 10 months.
DirectionsEach Rapid Response Team should designate a team member to complete a Rapid Response Team Record for each call. The team member uses the Record to document the reason the team was called, the interventions that took place, follow-up activities, and the outcome of the call. The Record should be filled out as soon after the call as possible.
