Proposed Topic (Most preferred): :
Staff Engagement and Empowerment (motivating staff / teamwork / work revamp tackling manpower issue / staff wellness / OSH / retention)
Authors (including presenting author) :
Suen HK(1), Yan WW(2), Tang KB(2), Mak HM(1)
Affiliation :
(1) Department of Accident and Emergency, Pamela Youde Nethersole Eastern Hospital
(2) Department of Intensive Care Unit, Pamela Youde Nethersole Eastern Hospital
Introduction :
Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy (HBOT) is an intervention that involves administration of nearly 100% oxygen at higher-than-normal atmospheric pressure in pressurized chamber. This therapy has shown promising results in treating various medical conditions, such as delayed radiation injury, non-healing wounds, decompression sickness, and carbon monoxide poisoning. Pamale Youde Nethersole Eastern Hospital (PYNEH) has commenced HBOT service since September 2018. In order to promote HBOT service among medical professions, PYNEH HBOT team has arranged guided tours in 2022 to 2023 for Medical and nursing staff.
Objectives :
(1) Raise awareness and knowledge of HBOT among healthcare professionals (2) Enhance understanding of treatment procedure during HBOT session (3) Introduce the overview of role and responsibility of members in the hyperbaric team.
Methodology :
Four guided tours were organized in 2022 and 2023 for selected groups of medical and nursing staff. Each tour included showcases of hyperbaric chamber and equipment, pre-dive health surveillance, trial diving experience in pressurized chamber, and experimental demonstrations of physical effect during pressure change. Participants attending test dive session were required to complete self-declaration checklist on physically fitness and underwent pre-dive health surveillance performed by hyperbaric physicians. Participants were invited to evaluate on effectiveness of the guided tour in enhancing recognition and understanding of HBOT service.
Result & Outcome :
69 participants were recruited, including 32 physicians and 37 nurses, and 55 evaluation forms were received (79.7%). Majority of participants expressed strongly agreed (60%) or agreed (40%) that they had a better understanding of the responsibilities of the hyperbaric team. They also expressed strongly agreed (65%) or agreed (35%) that the objective of the tour was achieved. All participants were satisfied with the experience in the tour, with overall rating of 9.27/10. More than half of participants (53%) expressed that they enjoyed trial dive in a pressurized chamber most.
The evaluation from the participants provided valuable insights on effectiveness of the guided tours as a promotional tool for HBOT services, which resulted in a positive impact on participants' knowledge, perception, and willingness to consider
HBOT as a viable medical option. Comments gathered during evaluation allow our team to optimize guided tours in the future. By increasing healthcare staff’s awareness and understanding of HBOT, it will promote the utilization of this unique service, resulting in improvement in patient outcomes.
