Metrics to Monitor the Function and Performance of the Pediatric Rapid Response System

Pediatric rapid response systems (RRSs) are a complex healthcare innovation intended to improve child health outcomes by preventing, or reducing, adverse consequences of critical illness. Measuring the effectiveness of pediatric RRS is as important as it is challenging. Issues relate to the infrequency of clinically relevant events, the geographic compartmentalization of the RRS as separate from the ICU, and the challenges of measuring functional, quality of life, and other outcomes after recovery from acute illnesses treated in hospital. Assessments of the effectiveness of RRS have thus defaulted to the use of surrogate and process outcomes that may not reflect the clinical impact of the considerable investment in teams, training, and infrastructure.