title: Implementation of an advanced nursing directive for suspected appendicitis to empower pediatric emergency nurses.
abstract: In response to a clinical safety review, we have implemented an AND to empower our pediatric emergency nurses to identify and initiate care directives for children with suspected appendicitis. Future quality assessment and research studies will focus on the accuracy of the AND in predicting which children will have imaging studies or an appendectomy as well as the impact of the AND on key pediatric ED flow measures.
authors.affiliation: Pediatric Emergency Department, Alberta Children's Hospital, Calgary, Alberta, Canada.
authors.forename: Erin Kate
authors.initials: EK
authors.lastname: deForest
authors.forename: Graham Cameron
authors.initials: GC
authors.lastname: Thompson
mesh_terms: D016223:Advance Directives / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence*; D001064:Appendicitis / Q000451:nursing*; D002648:Child; D016529:Emergency Nursing / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence* / Q000379:methods*; D006801:Humans; D010372:Pediatrics / Q000379:methods*; D014481:United States