Implementation of Electronic Postoperative Nausea and Vomiting Assessment and Best Practice Advisory Tools to Improve Patient Care

Abstract

Background: Postoperative nausea and vomiting (PONV) affects 30% of surgical patients undergoing anesthesia. PONV is a substantial cause of increased length of stay, cost of care, and unanticipated patient admission and readmission. Local Problem: Seventy percent of patients received PONV prophylaxis; PONV assessment was performed in only 63% of patients in this hospital system. Methods: A standardized PONV preoperative assessment checklist and a best practice advisory (BPA) were implemented in our electronic medical record (EMR) and charting system. Anesthesia providers and postanesthesia care unit (PACU) nurses completed training on patient management for PONV, including preoperative assessment and BPA use. Results: The PONV preoperative assessment achieved high adoption, and providers followed its recommendations in more than 90% of cases. During the 6-month implementation phase, PONV rates decreased from 56% to 43.6%. Conclusions: Implementing a standardized, electronic PONV preoperative risk assessment checklist and a BPA effectively reduced PONV rates in this hospital system.