A New Model of Tracheostomy Care: Closing the Research–Practice Gap

Performance improvements have brought about fundamental changes in the past year at Walter Reed Army Medical Center (WRAMC), where a concerted effort is underway to put current research into clinical practice. Tracheostomy care and suctioning became the pilot procedure for these changes in November 2002. What began as a unit-level initiative quickly developed into a Department of Nursing project. The focus of the project is adapting the hospital’s existing performance improvement model to better facilitate evidence-based practice. Initial surveys on tracheostomy care conducted throughout the hospital showed an inconsistent level of knowledge and a variation in clinical practice. These inconsistencies represented a patient safety threat in the form of nosocomial infections, prolonged hospitalizations, airway complications, and even death. To address these issues, the Nursing Performance Improvement and Nursing Research Departments entered into a research collaboration. Representatives from these departments worked with clinical experts to develop a plan and timeline for conducting a tracheostomy care project with the goal of implementing evidence into practice and thereby improving patient safety at the hospital. The group completed initial data collection in April 2003 and then began work on the evidence-based procedure. A literature review was completed using online searc