Adverse Events in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit: Development, Testing, and Findings of an NICU-Focused Trigger Tool to Identify Harm in North American NICUs

Abstract

Adverse event rates in the NICU setting are substantially higher than previously described. Many adverse events resulted in permanent harm and the majority were classified as preventable. Only 8% were identified using traditional voluntary reporting methods. Our NICU-focused trigger tool appears efficient and effective at identifying adverse events.