Nurses' views towards Early Warning Score and Emergency Response System

Background: The Early Warning Score (EWS) and the Emergency Response System (ERS) have been introduced in many healthcare settings for early identification and management of acutely unwell patients in the general wards. The... [ view full abstract ]

Background:
The Early Warning Score (EWS) and the Emergency Response System (ERS) have been introduced in many healthcare settings for early identification and management of acutely unwell patients in the general wards.
The aim of this study was to explore nurses’ attitudes towards EWS and ERS. The objectives were: to describe nurses’ attitudes towards EWS and ERS;
To describe nurses’ views about the usefulness of EWS and ERS on patient care and their work environments;
To compare ED and general ward nurses’ views of EWS and ERS and
To examine relationships between nurses’ education, experience, training and the activation of ERT.
Methods:
A quantitative descriptive design was used to survey 295 nurses working in the general wards and Emergency Department of a large teaching hospital. Data was analysed using SPSS.
Analysis and Results:
A total of 120 nurses responded to the survey which constitutes a response rate of 40.7%. The EWS and the ERS facilitated nurses to seek help when they were worried about a patient (91%), identified deteriorating patients early (90%) and prevented cardiac arrest in unstable patients (77.6%). The use of ISBAR communication tool along with the EWS chart improved communication between healthcare professionals. There were reluctance to call ERT(12.8%) because of concern about criticism if the patients are not that unwell. The use of EWS increased nurses (71%) job satisfaction. The ERS did not increase nurses’ work load when caring for a sick patient (66.7%). However, the use of EWS chart as a standard observation chart increased their workload (51%). There was no relationship between nurses’ education (P = 0.80), experience (P = 0.35), training (P = 0.25) and the activation of ERT. Overall, the EWS improved patient care and nurses working environment. This study recomends implimentation of EWS & ERS in all acute hospitals.