Enhancing nursing workflow and patient safety through an intelligent catheter risk alert system: A pre-post implementation study

Abstract

Objective To evaluate the effectiveness of an intelligent catheter risk-warning system in enhancing patient safety and nursing quality. Methods A pre-post implementation study in a tertiary hospital with nursing staff (n = 205) and patients with urinary or gastrointestinal catheters. The system integrated catheter care, maintenance overview, and QR-based patient education, enabling real-time alerts and automated label generation. Data on unplanned extubation rates, PSSUQ scores, nursing satisfaction, and labeling errors were compared before and after implementation. Results Unplanned nasogastric tube removal decreased from 0.852‰ to 0.501‰, while urinary catheter removal decreased from 0.219‰ to 0.114‰. PSSUQ scores and nursing satisfaction improved significantly after system implementation (P < 0.001). Label color selection and label clarity also improved significantly (P < 0.05). Conclusion The intelligent catheter risk alert system significantly reduced unplanned extubation rates and improved nursing workflow, providing a scalable model for enhancing patient safety in catheter management.