Semester
Fall
Date of Graduation
2022
Document Type
Problem/Project Report
Degree Type
DNP
College
School of Nursing
Department
Not Listed
Committee Chair
Mike Frame
Committee Co-Chair
Jared Lamp
Committee Member
Jared Lamp
Abstract
The challenge of postoperative pain control following a thoracotomy is well noted among anesthesia providers. The intraoperative utilization of low-dose ketamine in several patient populations, including those undergoing a thoracotomy, has been deemed a viable intervention in the multi-modal analgesia plan at not only reducing postoperative pain scores for patients, but also reducing opioid consumption. This quality improvement project sought to increase provider awareness of this intervention among anesthesia providers in a community hospital with a goal to influence a practice change. This was completed using a pre-post design centered around an educational in-service, with an additional 60-day follow-up survey to gather provider feedback on the success of the in-service. Baseline knowledge and utilization of this technique was determined prior to the educational offering. Statistically significant improvement in the knowledge of low-dose ketamine was noted and all providers indicated a willingness to implement this practice change. Despite low volumes of this patient population in this community hospital, those providers who did implement the use of low-dose ketamine felt both postoperative pain and opioid consumption were reduced.
Recommended Citation
Wampler, Jason, "A Quality Improvement Initiative for Intraoperative Low Dose Ketamine Utilization in Thoracotomy" (2022). Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports. 11632.
https://researchrepository.wvu.edu/etd/11632