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Announcements and latest updates

Right Decision Service newsletter: October 2024

Welcome to the Right Decision Service (RDS) newsletter for October 2024.

1.Contingency arrangements for RDS outages

Development of the contingency solutions to maximise RDS resilience and minimise risk of future outages is in progress, aiming for completion by Christmas. As a reminder, these contingency arrangements  are:

  • Optimising mobile app build process
  • Mobile app always to be downloadable.
  • Serialising builds to mobile app; separate mobile app build from other editorial and end-user processes
  • Load balancing – provides failover (also enables separation of editorial processes from other processes to improve performance.)

 

In the meantime, a gentle reminder to encourage users to download essential clinical toolkits to their mobile devices so that there is an offline version always available.

 

2. New deployment with improvements.

A new scheduled deployment with minor improvements drawn from support tickets, externally funded projects, information related to outages, and feature requests will take place in early December. Key improvements planned are:

  • Deep-linking to individual toolkits within the RDS mobile app. Each toolkit will now have its own direct URL and QR code, both accessible from the app. These can be used to download the toolkit directly where users already have the RDS app installed. If the user does not yet have the RDS app installed, they will be taken to the app store to install the app and immediately afterwards the toolkit will automatically open and download. Note that this will go live a few days later than the improvements below due to the need to link up the mobile front end to the changes in the content management system.
  • Introducing an Announcement Header field to replace the hardcoded "Announcements and latest updates" text. This will enable users to see at a glance the focus of new announcements.
  • Automated daily emptying of the recycling bin (with a 30 day rolling grace period)  in the content management system. A bug preventing complete emptying of the recycling bin contributed to one of the outages earlier this year.
  • Supporting multiple passcodes (ticket 6079)
  • Expanding accordion section to show location of a search result rather than requiring user coming from a search result to manually open all sections and search again for the term.
  • Displaying first accordion section Content text as a snippet on the search results page as a fallback if default/main content is not provided
  • Displaying the context of each search result in the form of a link to the relevant parent tool/section. This will help users to choose which search result is most likely to be appropriate for their needs.
  • As part of release of the new national benzodiazepine quality prescribing guidance toolkit sponsored by Scottish Government Effective Prescribing and Therapeutics, a digital tool to support creation of benzodiazepine tapering/withdrawal schedules.

We are also seeking approval to use the NHS Scotland logo and title for the RDS app on the app stores to help with audience engagement and clarity around the provenance of RDS.

3. RDS Search, Browse and Archive/Version control enhancements

We are still hopeful that user acceptance testing for at least the Search and browse enhancements can take place before Christmas. Thank you for your patience and understanding in waiting for these improvements. Timescales have been pushed back by old app migration challenges, work to address outages, and most recently implementing the contingency arrangements.

4. Support tickets

We are aware that there continue to be some issues around a number of RDS support tickets, in part due to constraints around visibility for the RDS team of the tickets in the existing  support portal. We are investigating the potential to move to a new support ticket requesting system from early in the new year. We will organise the proposed webinar around support ticket processes once we have confirmed the way forward with the system.

Table formatting

There is a known issue with alterations in formatting of some RDS tables which seems to have arisen as a result of the 17 October deployment. Tactuum is working on a fix and on implementing additional regression testing to prevent this issue recurring.

5. New RDS toolkits

Recently launched toolkits include:

NHS Lothian Infectious Diseases

Scottish Health Technologies Group – Technology Assessment recommendations

NHS Tayside Anaesthetics and Critical Care projects – an innovative toolkit which uses PowerAutomate to manage review and response to proposals for improvement projects.

If you would like to promote one of your new toolkits through this newsletter, please contact ann.wales3@nhs.scot

A number of toolkits are expected to go live before Christmas, including:

  • Focus on dementia
  • Highland Council Getting it Right for Every Child
  • Dumfries and Galloway Adult Support and Protection procedures
  • National Waiting Well toolkit
  • Fertility Scotland National Network
  • NHS Lothian postural care for care homes

6.Sign up to RDS Editors Teams channel

We have had a good response to the recent invitation to sign up to the new Teams channel for RDS editors. This provides a forum for editors to share learning, ideas and questions and we hope to hold regular webinars on topics of interest.  The RDS team is in the process of joining participants to the channel and we’d encourage all editors to take part, using the registration form – available in Providers section of the RDS Learning and Support area.

 

7. Evaluation projects

The RDS team has worked with colleagues in NHS Grampian and the Digital Health & Care Innovation Centre to evaluate the impact of the Prevent the progress of diabetes web and mobile app in a small-scale pilot project. This app provides access to local and national resources and services targeted at people with prediabetes, a history of gestational diabetes, or candidates for remission. After just 8 weeks of using the app, 94% of patients reported increased their knowledge and understanding of diabetes, and 88% said it had increased their confidence and motivation to make lifestyle changes, highlighting specific behaviour changes. The learning from this project is informing development of a service model based on tailored support for patient groups with, high, medium and low digital self-efficacy.

Please contact ann.wales3@nhs.scot if you would like to know more about this project.

  1. Training sessions for new editors (also serve as refresher sessions for existing editors) will take place on the following dates:

  • Friday 29th November 3-4 pm
  • Thursday 5 December 3.30 -4.30 pm

To book a place, please contact Olivia.graham@nhs.scot, providing your name, organisation, job role, and level of experience with RDS editing (none, a little, moderate, extensive.)

 

To invite colleagues to sign up to receive this newsletter, please signpost them to the registration form  - also available in End-user and Provider sections of the RDS Learning and Support area.   If you have any questions about the content of this newsletter, please contact his.decisionsupport@nhs.scot  If you would prefer not to receive future newsletters, please email Olivia.graham@nhs.scot and ask to be removed from the circulation list.

With kind regards

 

Right Decision Service team

Healthcare Improvement Scotland

 

The Right Decision Service:  the national decision support platform for Scotland’s health and care

Website: https://rightdecisions.scot.nhs.uk    Mobile app download:  Apple  Android

 

 

Early signs and symptoms of preterm labour (1037)

Please report any inaccuracies or issues with this guideline using our online form

Definition

Preterm birth, defined as delivery at less than 37 completed weeks of gestation, is the single biggest cause of neonatal morbidity and mortality.

It is estimated that around 1 in 13 babies are born prematurely in the UK every year. This statistic has been largely unchanged over the last 10 years.

Three quarters of these births are due to spontaneous onset labour and not all of these women have risk factors for pre term labour.

What is the importance of early diagnosis of pre-term labour?

Early diagnosis of pre-term labour can allow time to potentially- Early diagnosis can allow time to implement antenatal optimisation bundle checklist. Do you use this at RAH? Its two simple infographics which could be utilised here?

  • Delay delivery in order to administer antepartum steroids and Magnesium sulphate to reduce morbidity by up to 30% (1).
  • Early diagnosis may also permit transfer of the fetus in-utero to a centre where neonatal intensive care unit facilities are available.

Can we recognise pre-term labour?

Women can experience a range of subtle and non-specific symptoms during the prodromal period leading up to pre-term labour. These symptoms can develop over days to weeks prior to established pre-term labour(3). 

Although with low predictive value, these symptoms cause women to present themselves to health care services providing the opportunity for early diagnosis.

Signs and symptoms may include (4) (Please refer to attached infograph)

  • Abdominal Cramps- with or without diarrhoea
  • Backache- low, dull constant
  • Contractions 
  • Vaginal Discharge (increase in the amount of discharge) or bleeding
  • un-Easiness- feeling “not right”
  • Fetal movements /urine Frequency– changed
  • Gush of fluid loss - preterm rupture of membranes
  • Heaviness or pelvic pressure—the feeling that the baby is pushing down

Subtle changes in uterine activity patterns have been detected a few days to several weeks before overt pre-term labour (5). Uterine activity may or may not be perceived by patients at all and are not necessarily painful. It has been observed that only about half of women can feel painful uterine activity in the days preceding pre-term labour. About a third of patients can report no uterine contractions (3). One in five patients admitted with suspected pre-term uterine activity go on to develop established pre-term labour.

What are the obstacles to diagnosis?

  • Delay in presentation as women can attribute their symptoms to stress or normal discomfort of pregnancy. Pre-term labour is often not recognised by the patient as a possible cause of their symptoms.
  • Not “piecing it together” a woman who has had recurrent presentations with non-specific symptoms- attention to pattern and progress of symptoms can help triage these patients appropriately.

What can we improve?

The first presentation to health care by the patient is dependent on them perceiving their symptoms to be concerning. It will be helpful to make patients aware of possible association of the non-specific symptoms with threated pre-term labour particularly if they are persistent or progressive.

It will be advisable to arrange an obstetric medical review (ST3+ or clinically experienced ST2)for women with symptoms so that a speculum examination can be done. There should be an awareness of red flags for pre-term labour.

Appendix: Infographic - The 'A-H' of Pre-term Labour

Editorial Information

Last reviewed: 31/12/2021

Next review date: 31/07/2025

Author(s): Julie Murphy.

Version: 1

Approved By: Obstetrics Clincal Governance Group

Document Id: 1037

References
  1. Antenatal Optimisation for Preterm Infants less than 34 weeks:A Quality Improvement Toolkit.
  2. Cooper, R. L., Goldenberg, R. L., Davis, R. O., Cutter, G. R., DuBard, M. B., Corliss, D. K., & Andrews, J. B. (1990). Warning symptoms, uterine contractions, and cervical examination findings in women at risk for preterm delivery. American Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology, 162, 748-754.
  3. Weiss M, Saks N, Harris S.(2002).Resolving the uncertainty of preterm symptoms: women's experiences with the onset of preterm labor. J Obstet Gynecol Neonatal Nurs. Jan-Feb 2002;31(1):66-76.
  4. Maloni, J. A. (2000). Preventing preterm birth: Evidence-based interventions shift toward prevention. AWHONN Lifelines, 4(4), 26-33.
  5. Iams, J. D., Stilson, R., Johnson, F. F., Williams, R. A., & Rice, R. (1990). Symptoms that precede preterm labor and preterm premature rupture of the membranes. American Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology, 162, 486-490.