Practice of debriefing of critical events: a survey-based cross-sectional study of Portuguese anesthesiologists.

Abstract

We performed a national cross-sectional online survey exploring the practice of anesthesiologists' debriefing practice after critical events in Portuguese hospitals. The questionnaire was distributed using a snowball sampling technique from July to September 2021. Data were descriptively and comparatively analyzed. We had replies from 186 anesthesiologists (11.3% of the Portuguese pool). Acute respiratory event was the most reported type of critical event (96%). Debriefing occurred rarely or never in 53% of cases, 59% of respondents needed more training in debriefing, and only 4% reported having specific tools in their institutions to carry it out. There was no statistical association between having a debriefing protocol and the occurrence of critical events (P=.474) or having trained personnel (P=.95). The existence of protocols was associated with lower frequencies of debriefing (P=.017). Portuguese anesthesiologists know that debriefing is an essential process that increases patient safety, but among those surveyed, there is a need for an adequate debriefing culture or practice. Research registry 7741 (https://www.researchregistry.com/browse-the-registry#home).