Other Titles
Rising Star Poster/Presentation - Rapid Presentation Round
Abstract
Background/Significance of problem: Rapid Response Teams have been used to reduce the incidence of intrahospital decline. While these teams excel at providing emergent responses during times of critical illness, they generally lack a proactive approach.
Clinical question/project purpose: Is a dedicated Rapid Response Nurse role effective in improving the culture of safety and reducing Rapid Response Team activations? The purpose of this project is to implement a dedicated Rapid Response Nurse (RRN) role that aids nurses in identifying patients at risk of decline or who are currently declining.
Search of literature/best evidence: A literature search was completed for full-text, English-language studies on Rapid Response Teams (RRT) and Rapid Response Nurses (RRN). CINAHL, Medline, PubMed, and Cochrane Library were searched for original research studies using the keywords “Rapid Response Team”, “Rapid Response System”, “Rapid Response Nurse”, “failure to rescue”, and “proactive”. Studies dated prior to 2016 were excluded except for cases of seminal work. The search produced descriptive, quasi-experimental, mixed-method, and qualitative studies.
Clinical appraisal of literature/best evidence: Analysis of the evidence suggests four findings: 1) RRT studies focus on decreasing cardiac arrests and intubations outside of the ICU setting; 2) RRT benefits vary due to the heterogeneity of team structures; 3) few organizations utilize a proactive approach in their Rapid Response structure; and 4) there are limited studies that focus on a Registered Nurse in a proactive RRN role.
Integration into practice: This project includes five inpatient units at a suburban hospital. RRNs will be hired from the existing ICU roster with the goal that all shifts will be staffed. RRNs will proactively round on all five units and can be consulted by any staff member; consult does not require a physician order.
Evaluation of evidence-based practice: The project will include a pre- and post-comparative survey design which includes the AHRQ SOPS survey and will be conducted prior to project implementation and three-and six months post. Concurrently, the number of RRT activations and RRN consults will be evaluated.
Notes
Presenter notes available in slide deck.
References:Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality. (2022). Hospital survey on patient safety culture. https://www.ahrq.gov/sops/surveys/hospital/index.html
Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality. (2022). What is patient safety culture? https://www.ahrq.gov/sops/about/patient-safety-culture.html
Benin, A. L., Borgstrom, C. P., Jenq, G. Y., Roumanis, S. A., & Horwitz, L. I. (2012). Defining impact of a rapid response team: qualitative study with nurses, physicians and hospital administrators. BMJ Quality & Safety, 21(5), 391–398. https://doi.org/10.1136/bmjqs-2011-000390
Chua, W. L., See, M. T. A., Legio-Quigley, H., Jones, D., Tee, A., & Liaw, S. Y. (2017). Factors influencing the activation of the rapid response system for clinically deteriorating patients by frontline ward clinicians: a systematic review. International journal for quality in health care: journal of the International Society for Quality in Health Care, 29(8), 981–998. https://doi.org/10.1093/intqhc/mzx149
Dukes, K., Bunch, J. L., Chan, P. S., Guetterman, T. C., Lehrich, J. L., Trumpower, B., Harrod, M., Krein, S. L., Kellenberg, J. E., Reisinger, H. S., Kronick, S. L., Iwashyna, T. J., Nallamothu, B. K., & Girotra, S. (2019). Assessment of rapid response teams at top-performing hospitals for in-hospital cardiac arrest. JAMA Internal Medicine, 179(10), 1398–1405. https://doi.org/10.1001/jamainternmed.2019.2420
Heal, M., Silvest-Guerrero, S., & Kohtz, C. (2017). Design and development of a proactive rapid response system. Computers, Informatics, Nursing: CIN, 35(2), 77–83. https://doi.org/10.1097/CIN.0000000000000292
Milliken, C.L., Goodwin-Esola, M., & Seeley, S. (2018). Implementation of a pre-rapid response nurse: A success story. Nurse Leader, 16(5), 326-330. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.mnl.2018.06.003
Olsen, S. L., Søreide, E., Hillman, K., & Hansen, B. S. (2019). Succeeding with rapid response systems - a never-ending process: A systematic review of how health-care professionals perceive facilitators and barriers within the limbs of the RRS. Resuscitation, 144, 75–90. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.resuscitation.2019.08.034
Sigma Membership
Omicron Psi
Type
Presentation
Format Type
Text-based Document
Study Design/Type
Other
Research Approach
Translational Research/Evidence-based Practice
Keywords:
Rapid Response Team, Adverse Health Care Event, Nursing Role, Rapid Response Nurse
Recommended Citation
Kopsas-Kingsley, Brandie, "Implementation of a Dedicated Rapid Response Nurse" (2026). Creating Healthy Work Environments (CHWE). 33.
https://www.sigmarepository.org/chwe/2024/presentations_2024/33
Conference Name
Creating Healthy Work Environments
Conference Host
Sigma Theta Tau International
Conference Location
Washington, DC, USA
Conference Year
2024
Rights Holder
All rights reserved by the author(s) and/or publisher(s) listed in this item record unless relinquished in whole or part by a rights notation or a Creative Commons License present in this item record. All permission requests should be directed accordingly and not to the Sigma Repository. All submitting authors or publishers have affirmed that when using material in their work where they do not own copyright, they have obtained permission of the copyright holder prior to submission and the rights holder has been acknowledged as necessary.
Review Type
Abstract Review Only: Reviewed by Event Host
Acquisition
Proxy-submission
Date of Issue
2026-02-16
Implementation of a Dedicated Rapid Response Nurse
Washington, DC, USA
Background/Significance of problem: Rapid Response Teams have been used to reduce the incidence of intrahospital decline. While these teams excel at providing emergent responses during times of critical illness, they generally lack a proactive approach.
Clinical question/project purpose: Is a dedicated Rapid Response Nurse role effective in improving the culture of safety and reducing Rapid Response Team activations? The purpose of this project is to implement a dedicated Rapid Response Nurse (RRN) role that aids nurses in identifying patients at risk of decline or who are currently declining.
Search of literature/best evidence: A literature search was completed for full-text, English-language studies on Rapid Response Teams (RRT) and Rapid Response Nurses (RRN). CINAHL, Medline, PubMed, and Cochrane Library were searched for original research studies using the keywords “Rapid Response Team”, “Rapid Response System”, “Rapid Response Nurse”, “failure to rescue”, and “proactive”. Studies dated prior to 2016 were excluded except for cases of seminal work. The search produced descriptive, quasi-experimental, mixed-method, and qualitative studies.
Clinical appraisal of literature/best evidence: Analysis of the evidence suggests four findings: 1) RRT studies focus on decreasing cardiac arrests and intubations outside of the ICU setting; 2) RRT benefits vary due to the heterogeneity of team structures; 3) few organizations utilize a proactive approach in their Rapid Response structure; and 4) there are limited studies that focus on a Registered Nurse in a proactive RRN role.
Integration into practice: This project includes five inpatient units at a suburban hospital. RRNs will be hired from the existing ICU roster with the goal that all shifts will be staffed. RRNs will proactively round on all five units and can be consulted by any staff member; consult does not require a physician order.
Evaluation of evidence-based practice: The project will include a pre- and post-comparative survey design which includes the AHRQ SOPS survey and will be conducted prior to project implementation and three-and six months post. Concurrently, the number of RRT activations and RRN consults will be evaluated.
Description
Is a dedicated Rapid Response Nurse role effective in improving the culture of safety and reducing Rapid Response Team activations? The purpose of this project is to implement a dedicated Rapid Response Nurse (RRN) role that aids nurses in identifying patients at risk of decline or who are currently declining.