The Critical Care Outreach team (CCOT) is a nurse led service that supports ward nurses and doctors who are caring for acutely unwell inpatients. CCOT nurses are all highly experienced, senior nurses who have advanced skills in patient examination and diagnostics. We take patient referrals 24 hours a day, 365 days of the year. The role of CCOT is primarily to ensure that critically ill patients or those at risk of becoming so, receive appropriate and timely treatment in the most suitable location within the hospital environment. The team are also a valuable resource for ward staff in responding to and supporting patients who are stepping down from a period of critical illness, for example post an Intensive Care Unit (ICU) stay, as well as being key members of Kingston Hospital’s cardiac arrest team.
The purpose of the CCOT team is to :
• Ensure timely referral and admission to ICU for those patients who require a higher level of monitoring or support than can be provided at general ward level.
• Follow up patients who have been transferred from the ICU to general ward areas. CCOT follow up promotes a seamless transition between ICU and ward areas, whilst giving opportunity for CCOT staff to assess patients progress both physically and psychologically.
• Actively participate in the Deteriorating Patient Group (DPG), whose main aim is to lead and co-ordinate efforts to improve the safety of patients who are vulnerable to unexpected deterioration.
• Share our knowledge and skills with ward staff, both at the bedside and through formal education programmes, within the trust. We provide training to nurses, allied health professionals and junior doctors with the emphasis on the recognition and management of the acutely unwell patient. Areas of expertise include: Tracheostomy/Laryngectomy management, Non-invasive Ventilation – including BiPAP, Optiflow, Sepsis recognition and management, the Acute Life Threatening Events Recognition and Treatment course (ALERT) and Advanced Life Support.
Call 4 Concern© is a patient safety service enabling patients and families to call for immediate help and advice when they feel concerned that the health care team has not recognised their own or their loved one’s changing condition.
Patient Safety is a high priority in Kingston Hospital, especially when a patient’s condition worsens.
For more information click here – Call 4 Concern
