Initiation and Compliance with a Chest X-Ray (CXR) Reduction Protocol in the Children's National Medical Center Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU)

Background: Daily chest X-rays (CXR)s for the sole purpose of verifying the position of the endotracheal tube (ETT) have been deemed by the American Academy of Pediatrics to be one of the top 5 unnecessary tests that increase cost and utilize resources but do not increase efficacy nor safety. Restricting the frequency of CXRs is not associated with an increase in hospital mortality, increased length of stay, nor an increase in duration of mechanical ventilation. Objective: To evaluate the effectiveness of a restrictive CXR protocol in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) by assessing …