Implementing & Evaluating a Nurse-Led Educational Intervention for Bone Marrow Transplant Patients in the Acute Care Setting

Objective: The Bone Marrow Transplant (BMT) Basics Class is a nurse-led educational program dedicated to preparing patients and their caregivers of the treatment outline and self-care behaviors associated with receiving a BMT. The purpose of this project is to evaluate the effectiveness of this intervention in order to support the needs of the BMT patient and promote patient-centered care. Study Design: Retrospective review to evaluate a quality improvement project. Participants & Methods: As of July 2016, the BMT Basics Class became a standard of care at an NCI-designated academic cancer center in the southeastern United States. Between July 20, 2016 and November 30, 2016, 33 patients who received a BMT attended the class with their caregiver, making them eligible project participants. A retrospective evaluation of CLABSI rates, 30-day readmission rates, length of stay, and patient satisfaction scores was conducted pre- (July 2015 to November 2015) and post- (July 2016 to November 2016) intervention to determine if there were any improvements in quality indicators for the patients who attended the class compared to patients who received a transplant before the class was created. Results: There were no significant statistical differences between the pre- and post-implementation groups for length of stay or patient experience scores. 30-day readmission rate was lower among the post-implementation group (7.69% vs. 2.56%) with fewer patients readmitted for infection. However, there was an increase in CLABSI rate in the post-implementation group. Conclusion: Educational interventions, such as the BMT Basics Class, could provide a patient-centered approach to improving quality of care, when implemented in addition to current evidence-based practice