Research Update and Survey Questions

Over the last few weeks, I have sent out my survey to physicians and anesthesiologists at the numerous large hospitals in the Scottsdale area and have begun to categorize and analyze my responses. Just to make my process as transparent as possible, I have included all the questions I asked in my survey below this short post.

I set up my survey through Google Forms to then send all of my data into a spreadsheet, and I am currently in the process of picking out common responses and themes (from the short answer questions of my survey) in order to make broader conclusions. This is a data analysis method identified by award-winning researcher John Creswell as one of the most effective ways to analyze a qualitative survey, and has so far allowed me to discover that physicians tend to look at the most obvious pre-existing conditions that can interfere with PCA pumps (such as obesity, which is often readily apparent) when they don't have a PCA pump prescription protocol in place. This was exactly as I expected (and what seems most logical), and I hope to find out more about whether or not physicians are looking at the other pre-existing conditions (that may not be as readily apparent) that can cause death or injury when mixed with PCA pumps.

1. Which Hospital or Healthcare institution do you work for?
2. How often do you prescribe PCA pumps as a part of your job at your hospital (daily, weekly, monthly, etc.)?
3. Does your hospital have a certain protocol/procedure you must go through before prescribing a PCA pump in order to ensure the patient can medically or mentally handle the pump?
1. If so:
1. What are the main features of this protocol?
2. Does your protocol include asking/testing patients for any of the following? (check all that apply)
1. Sleep apnea
2. Cognitive Impairment (either the Mini-Mental Status Exam or another test to determine if the patient is suffering from any level of cognitive impairment)
3. Asthma
4. Mental Illness (either using the Mental Status Exam or another test to detect the presence of mental illness in a patient)
5. Obesity
6. Substance Abuse
3. Of all the times when you prescribe a PCA pump, how often do you actually follow this protocol completely?
4. Are there any additional tests you run or conditions you consider before prescribing a PCA pump to a patient? (These would be in addition to the 6 conditions listed in the second question above)
5. Do you feel that the current protocol procedure you have is a detriment to your work? (Please take into account factors such as time, stress, and strain on hospital resources that this protocol may incur)
2. If not:
1. What specific criteria do you consider before prescribing a PCA pump to a patient?
2. Do you feel that a procedure/protocol that all staff must go through prior to prescribing a PCA pump would be beneficial for patients?
3. Do you feel that having a PCA pump prescription protocol that you would have to complete before every time you prescribe a PCA pump would be a detriment to your work? (Such a protocol would likely require looking through the medical history of the patient and testing for conditions such as sleep apnea or some level of cognitive impairment. Please take into account factors such as time, stress, and strain on hospital resources that this protocol could lead to.)
4. How long does it typically take you to prescribe a PCA pump?