Implementation of Critical Incident Reporting in a Neonatal Intensive Care Unit

Abstract:

The occurrence of medical adverse events is a growing cause for concern worldwide. Critical incident reporting schemes have recently been suggested as an effective means to tackle the problem of medical adverse events. There are few comprehensive frameworks that accommodate the specific requirements of local settings as well as generic issues in incident reporting. The local setting radically influences a scheme’s successful implementation and maintenance. Major issues that impact the overall success of incident reporting schemes concern the format of data collection and, especially, a meaningful data analysis. This paper reports on the introduction of a critical incident reporting scheme to a neonatal intensive care unit (NICU). Issues concerning the implementation and maintenance of the reporting scheme are discussed. Incident analysis is described in terms of the process and the results of incident categorisation. The implications of such a viewpoint are considered.