Connecting The Dots of Healthcare

Well it hasn’t been. It’s been an amazing success. But why? To a large degree it’s been from the formation and use of rapid response teams. RRT works like this: ANYONE, from a housekeeper to a physician, from a nurse to an administrator, can call a RRT effort. But embracing “failure” has been key to its ultimate success.

Here is what is critical about the RRT. If ANYONE sees, hears, or even feels a patient is in trouble. ANYONE is empowered, and encouraged, to call a RRT event. This has dramatically decreased the number of out of ICU code situations and has been shown to save countless lives of patients in hospitals.

Here’s the acceptance of “failure” part. If it was a “false alarm,” that the patient wasn’t “really” in distress, there is NO STIGMA to the RRT initiator. You don’t get into trouble, there’s no second guessing, rather, the person who initiated the RRT is thanked, complimented, and encouraged to do it again if THEY think it’s the right thing to do. (Not if ANYONE ELSE thinks it’s necessarily the right thing to do.)

We must accept “failure” from others trying to do the right thing for patients. By allowing people to do the right thing, even if later circumstances prove otherwise, people are encouraged to continue to “do the right thing.” simple as that. By removing the “failure factor,” the reprimand for “wasting everyone’s time,” the ability for the individual to call another RRT will not be mitigated by the uncertainty and worry if their action could cause them to suffer any consequence.

Empowering ALL dots of healthcare in other spheres of healthcare innovation for improving patient centric care through open communication without fear of retribution of criticism is the lesson we can all take, and use, from the RRT principle.