Singing to newborns
I loved "Connecting with Olivia" (March 2020). The author described reconnecting with a child she had sung to during the child's early life in the pediatric ICU. I was sorry that the author didn't sing to Olivia when they reconnected. I would venture to guess that Olivia would have recognized her voice and the song.
-SHANNON E. PERRY, PhD, RN, FAAN
PHOENIX, ARIZ.
Cherry-picking the data?
I enjoyed the article entitled "Empowering Nurses to Activate the Rapid Response Team" (June 2020), but I have an issue with one point. The authors cited a systemic review of rapid response teams (RRTs) that found a 34% decrease in cardiopulmonary arrests in the non-ICU setting when an RRT was properly utilized.1 Although these are impressive data to support the use of RRTs, the authors of that review concluded, "Although rapid response team intervention appeared to reduce rates of cardiopulmonary arrest outside the ICU, the evidence to support their effectiveness in reducing mortality was lacking."1
As a reader, I felt as though the authors picked out a piece of information from the literature that supported their point of view and left out an important conclusion that did not.
-KIM BAILY, PhD, RN
PINE MOUNTAIN, CALIF.
The authors respond: The other authors and I appreciate your reading our Nursing2020 article as well as your astute observation of our use of the literature and the data that support it. The omission of the conclusion in one study, that evidence showing RRTs are effective in reducing mortality was lacking, was an oversight and not purposeful. The aim of this article was to empower non-ICU nurses to recognize and respond to deterioration in a patient's clinical status. We hope that our writing supports the significant role these nurses play in patient survival, which is more important than ever during the COVID-19 pandemic.
-COLLEEN NORTON, PhD, RN
REFERENCE