Clinician Adherence to Guideline for Phototherapy Use in Newborns

Abstract

Objectives: The objectives of this study were (1) to determine clinician adherence to the 2004 American Academy of Pediatrics guideline for phototherapy use in newborns; (2) to compare adherence to the guideline in 2 different hospitals; and (3) to determine whether adherence to the guideline improved after the phototherapy nomogram was available in newborn charts.Methods: This study was a retrospective review of medical records of 1160 newborns receiving care at the normal newborn nurseries at 2 Twin City, MN, hospitals. Four hundred thirty-six infants received phototherapy.Results: When phototherapy was administered, it was indicated in 37% of cases and not indicated in 8%. In 56% of cases it was considered subthreshold. When phototherapy was not administered, it was appropriate in 99% of cases but was inappropriate or missed in 1% of cases. There was a significant difference in clinician adherence to the phototherapy guidelines between the hospitals. The addition of the phototherapy nomogram to the newborn charts did not change adherence to the guideline.