The Impact of Interprofessional Training to Improve the Uptake of Noninvasive Ventilation in Patients Hospitalized With Severe COPD Exacerbation

COPD is the fourth leading cause of death in the US, and COPD exacerbations result in approximately 700,000 hospitalizations annually. Patients who do not respond to pharmacotherapy are placed on invasive (IMV) or noninvasive mechanical ventilation (NIV). Studies have shown that patients treated with NIV are less likely to require IMV and have better mortality and length of hospital stay. NIV is recommended in COPD guidelines as the first-line of treatment for patients with severe exacerbation who have failed pharmacologic treatment. Yet, despite compelling evidence of benefit, there is substantial variation in the implementation of NIV across hospitals, leading to preventable morbidity and mortality. The main goal of this project is to determine the impact of inter-professional educational strategies in 20 hospitals with low NIV use in COPD by using a non-randomized stepped-wedge open cohort design. Inter-professional education (IPE) targets complex team-based care in NIV delivery. The central hypothesis is that inter-professional education on how to care for patients with COPD using NIV will lead to improvement in the uptake of NIV, and that respiratory therapist (RT autonomy) and team functionality will act as mediators.