Episode #3: High-Quality TTM Matters to Hospitals

Mary Ann Liebert, Inc.

The Podcast entitled: “High-Quality TTM Matters to Hospitals” with Michael Kurz, MD, Associate Professor Department of Emergency Medicine, Co-Director Therapeutic Hypothermia Program at the University of Alabama Birmingham and David Hildebrandt, BSN, MBA, Associate Director, Clinical Operations at the Smidt Heart Institute, Cedars-Sinai Medical Center discussed their perspectives on clinical care from the nurse and physician perspective. The importance of implementing fully vetted TTM standard operating procedures supported by nurses and physicians was emphasized. This step was felt to be critical since TTM procedures are commonly conducted in parallel with other monitoring and treatment protocols to maximize patient recovery. The importance of different cooling techniques like surface and intravascular approaches on efficiency and nurse burden was also discussed. It’s important to emphasize that the use of automated TTM methods in emergency rooms and intensive care units have led to improved patient outcomes, reduced staff burden and cost savings for hospitals. Future research is required to determine more effective ways to personalize these TTM protocols to individuals based on injury severity and other relevant factors using surrogate biomarker platforms and other approaches.