There are two reasons for supporting the Canadian Agency for Drugs and Technologies in Health (CADTH) report, “Capnography for Monitoring End-Tidal CO2 in Hospital and Pre-hospital Settings: A Health Technology Assessment”.
As the CADTH report states:
In 2012, the Canadian Anesthesiologists’ Society (CAS) updated its guidelines to make capnography part of the standard of care in the practice of anesthesia in Canada. Specifically, the CAS guidelines require continuous use of capnography in monitoring patients during general anesthesia and sedation that corresponds to levels 4 through 6 on the Ramsay Sedation Scale. Despite strong clinical evidence for the use of capnography in general anesthesia and moderate to deep sedation, preliminary scoping discussions suggested that there may be a low rate of access or use of this technology in Canada.
PPAHS encourages the adoption of the CADTH report recommending the use of capnography monitoring by hospitals for monitoring the adequacy of ventilation of their patients receiving opioids for two major reasons – to save patient lives and to reduce hospital expenses and malpractice claims. Both of these reasons may not have been emphasized enough in the report.
These are some of the patients that PPAHS has written about – all involving death or near death following administration of opioids:
PPAHS shared these patient stories at the inaugural meeting of the National Coalition to Promote Continuous Monitoring of Patients on Opioids. To read these patient stories, please click here.
To read the open letter by PPAHS to CADTH, please click here.