Researchers: Bridgette Cocquyt SRT, Julie Brown RRT, Amal Shahzad SRT, Bailey Narasnek SRT, Diti Das SRT, Emily Van Niekerk SRT, Lily Sun SRT, Sierra Roberts SRT, Rewand Latvanen RRT, Dave Wall RRT, Yvonne Drasovean RRT, Greg Donde RRT, Gary Sullivan students and faculty in the School of Health Sciences at Fanshawe College, London, ON, Canada.
Invitation
You are invited to participate in a research study on current practices in Canada of bag mask ventilation in patients with facial hair. This is a research project conducted by students and faculty in the Respiratory Therapy program at Fanshawe College, London, ON, Canada.
Before you decide whether or not you wish to participate in this study, it is important for you to understand why the research is being done and what it will involve. Please take the time to read the following information carefully and discuss it with others if you wish.
What is the purpose of this study?
Effective bag mask ventilation requires a tight seal between a patient’s face and the resuscitation device mask (Higginson & Parry, 2013). Facial hair can impede the tight seal and cause gas leakage around the mask interface leading to inadequate ventilation (Alkan et al., 2021). The presence of facial hair is an independent predictor of difficult or impossible mask ventilation (Kheterpal et al., 2009; Gavish et al., 2020). Current practice for providing bag mask ventilation to patients with facial hair varies by institution and by individual health care provider. A literature review was conducted to identify current practices for manual ventilation in patients with facial hair. We have identified a gap in the literature and a lack of consistency for providing bag mask ventilation in patients with facial hair.
The goal of this project is to investigate techniques currently used by Respiratory Therapists and Anesthesia Assistants in Canada for obtaining an adequate seal, ensuring effective bag mask ventilation in patients with facial hair. The data obtained from this investigation can be used to inform clinicians with future airway management of patients with facial hair.