Provider Perceptions of Neuromuscular Blockade in ARDS

Overview

The proposed study will use qualitative methodology to understand health care provider perceptions of neuromuscular blockade (NMB) in patients with Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome (ARDS). To achieve this goal the investigators will conduct a prospective ancillary study at four clinical centers participating in the NHLBI PETAL network as part of the ROSE (Reevaluation of Systemic Early Neuromuscular Blockade) clinical trial (NCT02509078). Using thematic content analysis of semistructured interviews with health care providers caring for patients enrolled in the ROSE trial the investigators will determine the barriers to NMB use and develop a framework for future NMB adoption in ARDS.

Efficient translation of clinical trial results into practice is an enduring challenge in critical care, with many critically ill patients not receiving evidence-based therapies proven to save lives. One approach to speed the translation of clinical trial evidence into practice is through qualitative research to better understand the barriers to evidence-based care and help design innovative interventions to overcome those barriers.. This work need not wait until the clinical trial is complete-an emerging literature highlights the value of qualitative research concurrent with the conduct of a clinical trial. Such research has several potential benefits, including facilitating implementation of the intervention in the real world, identifying the potential mechanism of action, and identifying contextual factors necessary for the treatments effectiveness. The Reevaluation Of Systemic Early Neuromuscular Blockade (ROSE) study, conducted by the NHLBI PETAL Clinical Trials Network, is an ideal trial for which to perform a concurrent qualitative implementation study (NCT02509078). NMB has the potential to substantially reduce mortality in ARDS. Yet NMB remains incompletely adopted for reasons that are poorly understood but likely relate to clinical equipoise, historical concerns about safety, and the inherent difficulties in providing complex practices in the intensive care unit (ICU). A better understanding of provider views regarding NMB will provide essential data to aid interpretation of study results and design an implementation study should ROSE demonstrate a survival benefit with NMB. To examine this issue the investigators will perform a prospective qualitative study using semi-structured interviews health care professionals providing direct care for patients enrolled in ROSE. A trained research coordinator will perform semi-structured interviews with consenting participants. Interviews will be transcribed and uploaded into commercially available qualitative data software. Trained qualitative researchers will read and code each interview based on Consolidated Framework for Implementation Research, a widely accepted conceptual theory of evidence-uptake.