# Audit: Paediatric Blood Culture Documentation Improvement
> Clinical audit on improving documentation quality in paediatric blood culture collection. Covers standards, audit results, and SMART action plans.

Tags: paediatrics, clinical-audit, healthcare-quality, blood-culture, documentation, patient-safety, nursing, medical-education
## Paediatric Blood Culture Documentation: Clinical Audit

- **Audit Lead:** Dr. Avery Jenkins
- **Objective:** Assess and improve documentation quality for paediatric blood culture collection based on UKHSA and NICE standards.

## Methodology
- Retrospective audit of 101 paediatric blood culture episodes using Cerner EPR data.
- Criteria included: Clinician name, time, site, technique, indication, and volume.

## Key Results
- **Compliance Gap:** All criteria fell below the 80% target.
- **Specific Rates:** Clinician documented in 36% of cases; site in 32%; technique in 29%.
- **Critical Findings:** 0% documentation for clinical indication and 0% for blood volume.
- **Documentation Split:** Phlebotomists (58%), Doctors (33%), others (9%).

## Clinical Impact
- Inadequate documentation leads to: 
  - Unnecessary antibiotic use
  - Prolonged hospital stays
  - Poor antimicrobial stewardship
  - Reduced patient safety due to inability to differentiate contamination from true infection.

## Action Plan & Recommendations
- **Cerner Auto-Text:** Introduce standardized templates for easier documentation.
- **Education:** Targeted staff teaching sessions on volume requirements and technique.
- **Volume Targets:** Neonates (0.5–1 mL), Infants (1–3 mL), Young Children (3–5 mL), Older Children (up to 10 mL).
- **Re-audit:** Planned within 2–4 weeks to ensure compliance reaches ≥80%.
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