Sedation AND Weaning In CHildren: the SANDWICH trial

In the UK, on average 18,300 children per year are admitted to PICUs and 66% require mechanical ventilation. Increased duration of mechanical ventilation carries an increased risk of mortality, morbidity and side effects of sedation. Currently few nurses are engaged in and wean ventilation, yet a more integrated team-based approach to assessment and weaning of sedation and ventilation may be able to reduce the duration of ventilation. This research is for children, families and the healthcare service, as reducing ventilation time is better for everyone. The activities involved a cluster stepped wedge randomised controlled trial in 15 UK PICUs

The results due to be published in 2020 we hope will show that a team-based approach will reduce ventilation times at least in certain groups of children and/or in certain PICUs. This is largest recruiting trial ever in childrens intensive care units worldwide with over 10,500 patients being included in the study. The results of this research will have positive impact on both children and their families but also on the PICU healthcare team and processes

Funder: NIHR HTA £1,879,379.80

Team: Prof Bronagh Blackwood (Chief Investigator) Lyvonne Tume (co-investigator), Prof Danny McCauley, Dr Kevin Morris, Prof Mark Peters, Dr Cliona McDowell, Dr Karla Hemming, Ashley Agus, Mike Clarke, Joanne Jordan and the Northern Ireland CTU