Hospital-wide Code Rates and Mortality Before and After Implementation of a Rapid Response Team

Abstract

In-hospital cardiac arrests are common^1,2 and delays in treatment are associated with lower survival and worse neurological outcomes.¹ Prior studies have reported that adult patients often exhibit physiological deterioration hours before cardiopulmonary arrest.^3-5 As a result, the Institute for Healthcare Improvement recommended in their 100 000 Lives Campaign that hospitals implement rapid response teams as 1 of 6 strategies to reduce preventable in-hospital deaths.⁶ In response, hundreds of hospitals around the country have invested significant financial and personnel resources in implementing rapid response teams, despite the fact that limited published data support their effectiveness.