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06/21/2022
The Wentworth-Douglass Hospital Emergency Department has earned “pediatric ready” status with Always Ready for Children (ARC), a program focused on creating a regional approach to pediatric care to unify care standards across states and allow for collaborative improvements in pediatric readiness.
Hospitals recognized as being “pediatric ready” by a recognition program scored higher on the National Pediatric Readiness Assessment (NPRA), and the establishment of such recognition programs demonstrated pediatric mortality rates four times lower than other hospitals, according to the ARC program.
“The ARC program has provided our team an opportunity to ensure we have the appropriate tools, guidelines, and equipment to deliver the highest quality pediatric care to those in our community,” said Kayla Fitzgerald, executive director of Critical Care Services at Wentworth-Douglass Hospital. “We are fortunate to have talented members on our team, including Molly Allard, child life specialist, Sadie Nason, our transfer coordinator ED, Jackie McCourt APRN, and Emily Knight , chair our pediatric committee, and providers from the Seacoast Emergency Physician group who provided oversight during the assessment process and who work with nursing staff to improve gaps in our clinical practice.”
To qualify for “ready” status the Wentworth-Douglass Emergency Department:
• Assigned a Pediatric Emergency Care Coordinator (nurse and/or physician within the ED).
• Participated in the National Pediatric Readiness Assessment with a score > 70.
Donna Kousaie, trauma program manager, led the hospital’s effort to earn the recognition and was recognized as the hospital’s pediatric emergency care coordinator. Kousaie said the hospital already had a lot of best practices in place, it was just a matter of pushing forward with a more coordinated approach.
The ARC program is a collaborative project forming a state and region-wide recognition system for emergency departments committed to improving their pediatric care. The program is hosted by the region’s EMS for Children State Partnership Programs (EMSC) under the federal Health Resources and Services Administration and with support from additional state and federal partners.
States involved in the program include New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Maine, Connecticut, New Jersey, New York, Rhode Island, and Vermont.