Advanced practitioners in emergency care: a literature review

Design and implementation of a training programme on ultrasound-guided lower limb peripheral nerve blockade: An Advanced Clinical Practitioner's personal journey

Increased demand in services, workforce pressures and continued financial constraints has resulted in a significant expansion in advanced clinical practice roles in the United Kingdom. This article will describe the personal experience of a perioperative Advanced Clinical Practitioner in the design and implementation of a training programme to achieve competence in ultrasound-guided lower limb peripheral nerve blockade. Three specific lower limb peripheral nerve blockade were included in the training programme, namely sciatic nerve block at the popliteal fossa, saphenous nerve block, and femoral nerve block. Key service drivers underpinning development, rationale for Advanced Clinical Practitioner involvement in lower limb peripheral nerve blockade and governance will also be discussed.

A comparison of the practice patterns of emergency department teams that include physicians, nurse practitioners, or physician assistants

BACKGROUND

Physicians see most emergency department (ED) patients, but, recently, nurse practitioners (NPs) and physician assistants (PAs) have provided an increasing amount of ED care.

PURPOSE

Compare NP and PA teams' practice patterns to physician teams in EDs.

METHODS

Using 12 years of data from the National Hospital Ambulatory Medical Care Survey (2009-2020), we used multivariate regression analysis to separately examine the associations between the ED practice patterns (i.e., number of diagnostic services, number of procedures, waiting time, boarding time, length of visit, and hospital admission) of patients seen by NP or PA teams compared with physician teams.

DISCUSSION

Patient visits to NP and PA teams received fewer diagnostic services and procedures, had shorter visits, and were less likely to be hospitalized.

CONCLUSION

If the additional diagnostic services, procedures, and hospital admission provided by physician teams were unnecessary for the patients studied, NP and PA team care could be more efficient.

Scoping of advanced clinical practitioner role implementation using national job advertisements: Document analysis

AIM

The aim of this study is to profile the contemporary advanced clinical practitioner (ACP) role through standardized document sets.

DESIGN

Documentary analysis of job descriptions (JDs), person specification and advertisements.

DATA SOURCES

England based jobs advertised on NHS jobs website from 22 January to 21 April 2021.

RESULTS

A toatal of 143 trainee and qualified ACP roles were identified. A wide range of sectors and specialities were represented from across all English regions. The most common roles were urgent care, emergency medicine and primary care. Most qualified roles were agenda for change band 8A, although this did vary across specialities. Many roles were restricted to a small number of professions, notably nursing, physiotherapy and paramedic. Inconsistent role titles were noted. A lack of understanding of regulation across different professions was noted.

CONCLUSION

The ACP role has become an accepted across healthcare providers in England. Implementation remains varied across specialities and organizations. Eligibility criteria may relate to professional bias.

IMPLICATIONS FOR THE PROFESSION AND/OR PATIENT CARE

ACP roles are expanding but this may be at the detriment to advanced nursing posts. Inconsistency in role eligibility suggests some professional bias exists.

IMPACT

This was scoping of ACP roles across England using job advertisements. ACP roles are common across sectors and specialities but eligibility varies. The research will have impact on those looking to recruit to ACP roles as well as those refining JDs.

REPORTING METHOD

No EQUATOR guideline exists for document analysis.

PATIENT OR PUBLIC CONTRIBUTION

No Patient or Public Contribution. The research relates to organizational human resource information only.

Characterising the outcomes, impacts and implementation challenges of advanced clinical practice roles in the UK: a scoping review

OBJECTIVES

In response to demographic and health system pressures, the development of non-medical advanced clinical practice (ACP) roles is a key component of National Health Service workforce transformation policy in the UK. This review was undertaken to establish a baseline of evidence on ACP roles and their outcomes, impacts and implementation challenges across the UK.

DESIGN

A scoping review was undertaken following JBI methodological guidance.

METHODS

13 online databases (Medline, CINAHL, ASSIA, Embase, HMIC, AMED, Amber, OT seeker, PsycINFO, PEDro, SportDiscus, Osteopathic Research and PenNutrition) and grey literature sources were searched from 2005 to 2020. Data extraction, charting and summary was guided by the PEPPA-Plus framework. The review was undertaken by a multi-professional team that included an expert lay representative.

RESULTS

191 papers met the inclusion criteria (any type of UK evidence, any sector/setting and any profession meeting the Health Education England definition of ACP). Most papers were small-scale descriptive studies, service evaluations or audits. The papers reported mainly on clinical aspects of the ACP role. Most papers related to nursing, pharmacy, physiotherapy and radiography roles and these were referred to by a plethora of different titles. ACP roles were reported to be achieving beneficial impacts across a range of clinical and health system outcomes. They were highly acceptable to patients and staff. No significant adverse events were reported. There was a lack of cost-effectiveness evidence. Implementation challenges included a lack of role clarity and an ambivalent role identity, lack of mentorship, lack of continuing professional development and an unclear career pathway.

CONCLUSION

This review suggests a need for educational and role standardisation and a supported career pathway for advanced clinical practitioners (ACPs) in the UK. Future research should: (i) adopt more robust study designs, (ii) investigate the full scope of the ACP role and (iii) include a wider range of professions and sectors.

Perceptions of competency in advanced clinical practice

BACKGROUND

Historically, there has been limited research carried out on the competency of individuals undertaking advanced clinical roles.

AIMS

To research advanced clinical practitioner (ACP) perceptions of the term competency, and how they evidence their competency in practice.

METHODS

A cross-sectional, qualitative study used semi-structured interviews, which were analysed by content analysis. Six participants were recruited to the study.

FINDINGS

There is disparity in the definitions of 'trainee' and 'qualified' ACP in clinical practice as well as disparity and ambiguity regarding being able to work in a supernumerary capacity during training and master's level study. There is a lack of agreement over the benchmark for qualified ACP status and the road to getting there.

CONCLUSION

ACPs should be employed in a supernumerary capacity while training and work towards a full MSc in advanced clinical practice. They should maintain a portfolio of their competency. Work must also be carried out nationally to identify both generic and specialist curricula for ACPs to benchmark against.

Advanced paramedics and nurses can deliver safe and effective pre-hospital and in-hospital emergency care: An integrative review

AIM

To explore and present an overview of scope of practice among registered nurses and paramedics with an advanced level of education in pre-hospital and in-hospital emergency care.

DESIGN

An integrative literature review.

METHOD

Studies published between 2006 and 2018 were retrieved by searching the databases CINAHL, PubMed, Scopus and Web of Science. Studies were selected by three independent researchers, and data were synthesized using thematic analysis.

RESULTS

The 25 studies identified focused on in-hospital (n = 15) and pre-hospital emergency care (n = 10) and included 13 professional titles originated from seven countries. The thematic analysis disclosed four themes; "Versatile care," "Safe care based on precision and accuracy," "Autonomous performance within boundaries" and "Beneficial towards patients and society." Advanced paramedics' and advanced nurses' services are characterized as safe, of high quality and of public benefit. Their services are being used in everyday practice as well as directed to certain categories of patients.

Nurses and the Manchester: rearranging the work process and emergency care?

OBJECTIVE

to understand the changing roles of nurses in labor division organization in hospitals from the Manchester Triage System implementation in an emergency hospital.

METHODS

this is an ethnographic study that used different production techniques and data analysis.

RESULTS

the Manchester Triage System organized flows and places resulting in quality of care and changes in work processes. Conflict relationships related to disagreements in risk stratification were present.

FINAL CONSIDERATIONS

the traditional roles of nurses have been transformed, but it cannot be said that there was a structural change in their position in labor division organization in hospitals. The frontiers of autonomy, therefore of increasing the professionalization of nurses, are neither fixed nor stable, expanding or contracting according to the micropolitical changes in the governance of care.

Comparing physician associates and foundation year two doctors-in-training undertaking emergency medicine consultations in England: a mixed-methods study of processes and outcomes

OBJECTIVES

To compare the contribution of physician associates to the processes and outcomes of emergency medicine consultations with that of foundation year two doctors-in-training.

DESIGN

Mixed-methods study: retrospective chart review using 4 months' anonymised clinical record data of all patients seen by physician associates or foundation year two doctors-in-training in 2016; review of a subsample of 40 records for clinical adequacy; semi-structured interviews with staff and patients; observations of physician associates.

SETTING

Three emergency departments in England.

PARTICIPANTS

The records of 8816 patients attended by 6 physician associates and 40 foundation year two doctors-in-training; of these n=3197 had the primary outcome recorded (n=1129 physician associates, n=2068 doctor); 14 clinicians and managers and 6 patients or relatives for interview; 5 physician associates for observation.

PRIMARY AND SECONDARY OUTCOME MEASURES

The primary outcome was unplanned re-attendance at the same emergency department within 7 days.

SECONDARY OUTCOMES

consultation processes, clinical adequacy of care, and staff and patient experience.

RESULTS

Re-attendances within 7 days (n=194 (6.1%)) showed no difference between physician associates and foundation year two doctors-in-training (OR 0.87, 95% CI 0.61 to 1.24, p=0.437). If seen by a physician associate, patients were more likely receive an X-ray investigation (OR 2.10, 95% CI 1.72 to 4.24), p<0.001), after adjustment for patient characteristics, triage severity of condition and statistically significant clinician intraclass correlation. Clinical reviewers found almost all patients' charts clinically adequate. Physician associates were evaluated as assessing patients in a similar way to foundation year two doctors-in-training and providing continuity in the team. Patients were positive about the care they had received from a physician associate, but had poor understanding of the role.

CONCLUSIONS

Physician associates in emergency departments in England treated patients with a range of conditions safely, and at a similar level to foundation year two doctors-in-training, providing clinical operational efficiencies.

An exploration of the role of advanced clinical practitioners in the East of England

Medical staff shortages in the UK have provided impetus for the introduction of advanced clinical practitioners (ACPs). This case study explored the views of 22 ACPs, managers and doctors in primary and acute settings in a region of England, to understand how the role is used, and barriers and facilitators to its success. ACP roles improved the quality of service provision, provided clinical career development and enhanced job satisfaction for staff and required autonomous clinical decision-making, with a high degree of self-awareness and individual accountability. Barriers included disparate pay-scales and funding, difficulty accessing continuing education and research, and lack of agreed role definition and title, due to a lack of standardised regulation and governance, and organisational barriers, including limited access to referral systems. Facilitators were supportive colleagues and opportunities for peer networking. Regulation of ACP roles is urgently needed, along with evaluation of the cost-effectiveness and patient experience of such roles.

Strategies to measure and improve emergency department performance: a scoping review

Background

Over the last two decades, Emergency Department (ED) crowding has become an increasingly common occurrence worldwide. Crowding is a complex and challenging issue that affects EDs’ capacity to provide safe, timely and quality care. This review aims to map the research evidence provided by reviews to improve ED performance.

Methods and findings

We performed a scoping review, searching Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews, Scopus, EMBASE, CINAHL and PubMed (from inception to July 9, 2019; prospectively registered in Open Science Framework https://osf.io/gkq4t/). Eligibility criteria were: (1) review of primary research studies, published in English; (2) discusses a) how performance is measured in the ED, b) interventions used to improve ED performance and their characteristics, c) the role(s) of patients in improving ED performance, and d) the outcomes attributed to interventions used to improve ED performance; (3) focuses on a hospital ED context in any country or healthcare system. Pairs of reviewers independently screened studies’ titles, abstracts, and full-texts for inclusion according to pre-established criteria. Discrepancies were resolved via discussion. Independent reviewers extracted data using a tool specifically designed for the review. Pairs of independent reviewers explored the quality of included reviews using the Risk of Bias in Systematic Reviews tool. Narrative synthesis was performed on the 77 included reviews. Three reviews identified 202 individual indicators of ED performance. Seventy-four reviews reported 38 different interventions to improve ED performance: 27 interventions describing changes to practice and process (e.g., triage, care transitions, technology), and a further nine interventions describing changes to team composition (e.g., advanced nursing roles, scribes, pharmacy). Two reviews reported on two interventions addressing the role of patients in ED performance, supporting patients’ decisions and providing education. The outcomes attributed to interventions used to improve ED performance were categorised into five key domains: time, proportion, process, cost, and clinical outcomes. Few interventions reported outcomes across all five outcome domains.

Conclusions

ED performance measurement is complex, involving automated information technology mechanisms and manual data collection, reflecting the multifaceted nature of ED care. Interventions to improve ED performance address a broad range of ED processes and disciplines.

Productivity of Advanced Clinical Practitioners in Emergency Medicine: A 1-year dual-centre retrospective analysis

BACKGROUND

The ACP role is relatively new in Emergency Medicine (EM) nationally (RCEM, 2017). This work sought to establish the productivity of EM ACPs within our service, to enable evidence-based workforce planning and national benchmarking of this aspect of the role.

METHODOLOGY

Data from 1st January 2018-31st December 2018 was retrospectively collected from two hospitals in the United Kingdom (UK) via electronic patient records. In addition to the number of patients seen by ACPs (attending), the number of patients who were seen by an ACP as a senior review (SR) was collected. The productivity was mapped to ACP experience, with patient acuity and disposal reported.

RESULTS

In the study period 239,951 patients were seen in the Emergency Departments (EDs) of the two study hospitals. Overall 20,442 (8.5%) patients received care from an ACP. Mean productivity was 1.03 patients per hour (attending) and 1.53 patients per hour (attending and senior review).

DISCUSSION

EM ACPs form part of the RCEM future workforce strategy to overcome some of the contemporary challenges in EM (Hassan, 2018). To our knowledge, this is the first study which has examined and reported the productivity of ACPs in UK EM.

CONCLUSION

This paper sets a national benchmark for other EDs by reporting ACP productivity and contributes to the evidence by reporting productivity in other clinician groups. The data presented may be helpful in future national workforce planning for UK EDs.

Scoping the application of primary care advanced clinical practice roles in England

Purpose

This study aims to scope the profile and application of an advanced clinical practitioner (ACP) roles in primary care in the North of England and how these roles meet the requirements of Health Education England's (HEE’s) ACP workforce capability framework.

Design/methodology/approach

A two-stage design was used. Stage 1 analysed health and social care workforce intelligence reports to inform scoping of numbers of ACPs working in primary care. Stage 2 used two surveys. Survey 1 targeted ACP leads and collected strategic-level data about ACP application. Survey 2 targeted staff who perceived themselves to be working as ACPs. Survey 2 was in three parts. Part 1 collected demographic data. Part 2 required participants to record their perceived competence against each of the HEE ACP framework capability criteria. Part 3 required respondents to identify facilitators and barriers to ACP practice.

Findings

Despite the introduction of HEE's ACP capability framework, there is inconsistency and confusion about the ACP role. The results indicated a need for standardisation of role definition and educational and practice requirements. The results also suggested that some ACPs are not working to their full potential, while some staff who are employed as “gap-fillers” to provide routine clinical services perceive themselves as ACPs despite not working at the ACP level.

Originality/value

Although previous research has explored the application of ACP practice in primary care, few studies have considered ACP application in the light of the introduction of workforce capability frameworks aimed at standardising ACP practice.

Characterising the evidence base for advanced clinical practice in the UK: a scoping review protocol

INTRODUCTION

A global health workforce crisis, coupled with ageing populations, wars and the rise of non-communicable diseases is prompting all countries to consider the optimal skill mix within their health workforce. The development of advanced clinical practice (ACP) roles for existing non-medical cadres is one potential strategy that is being pursued. In the UK, National Health Service (NHS) workforce transformation programmes are actively promoting the development of ACP roles across a wide range of non-medical professions. These efforts are currently hampered by a high level of variation in ACP role development, deployment, nomenclature, definition, governance and educational preparation across the professions and across different settings. This scoping review aims to support a more consistent approach to workforce development in the UK, by identifying and mapping the current evidence base underpinning multiprofessional advanced level practice in the UK from a workforce, clinical, service and patient perspective.

METHODS AND ANALYSIS

This scoping review is registered with the Open Science Framework (https://osf.io/tzpe5). The review will follow Joanna Briggs Institute guidance and involves a multidisciplinary and multiprofessional team, including a public representative. A wide range of electronic databases and grey literature sources will be searched from 2005 to the present. The review will include primary data from any relevant research, audit or evaluation studies. All review steps will involve two or more reviewers. Data extraction, charting and summary will be guided by a template derived from an established framework used internationally to evaluate ACP (the Participatory Evidence-Informed Patient-Centred Process-Plus framework).

DISSEMINATION

The review will produce important new information on existing activity, outcomes, implementation challenges and key areas for future research around ACP in the UK, which, in the context of global workforce transformations, will be of international, as well as local, significance. The findings will be disseminated through professional and NHS bodies, employer organisations, conferences and research papers.

Nurses in the Kanban: are there news meanings of professional practice in innovative tools for hospital care management?

Kanban is a care management tool that values multi-professional work and intensive use of data and has been growingly used in Brazil to address overcrowding in hospital emergency services (HES). The researchers monitored the Kanban for ten months in multiple wards of a municipal HES, and their observations were recorded in field diaries and discussed in biweekly research team meetings. The empirical material was organized from two questions: Are there changes in "traditional attributions" of Kanban-operating nursing? Are Medicine-Nursing interprofessional relationships transformed? A strong nurse adherence to this tool was observed, coupled with greater specialization and fragmentation of their work: nurses working as diarists assume more traditional administrative functions, while those on-call develop more direct assistance to patients. Nurses consider that clinical decisions are still in the doctors' hands, although Kanban provides them with a stronger influence on such decisions. Nurses' role in the management of significant mass of clinical and operational data, central to Kanban's operationalization, strengthens their professional authority.

Whole systems approach

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to ascertain primary care advanced clinical practitioners’ (ACP) perceptions and experiences of what factors influence the development and identity of ACP roles, and how development of ACP roles that align with Health Education England’s capability framework for advanced clinical practice can be facilitated in primary care.

Design/methodology/approach

The study was located in the North of England. A qualitative approach was used in which 22 staff working in primary care who perceived themselves to be working as ACPs were interviewed. Data analysis was guided by Braun and Clarke’s (2006) six phase method.

Findings

Five themes emerged from the data – the need for: a standardised role definition and inclusive localised registration; access to/availability of quality accredited educational programmes relevant to primary care and professional development opportunities at the appropriate level; access to/availability of support and supervision for ACPs and trainee ACPs; a supportive organisational infrastructure and culture; and a clear career pathway.

Originality/value

Findings have led to the generation of the Whole System Workforce Framework of INfluencing FACTors (IN FACT), which lays out the issues that need to be addressed if ACP capability is to be maximised in primary care. This paper offers suggestions about how IN FACT can be addressed.

An intervention to improve retention in emergency nursing

The UK has a serious shortage of nurses and for the first time in recent nursing history 27% more UK registrants left the register in 2016-2017 than joined it. Emergency nurses are particularly affected as their environment is unpredictable, fast-paced and increasingly crowded. This article reports the results of a study of a successful initiative to retain senior emergency nurses in a London trust.