Outcomes of Using Pediatric Early Warning Score (PEWS) with Automatic Alert System in Hospitalized Pediatric Patients
Jiranat Poungkaew, MD¹
, Chanakan Anuntariyakoon, BNS²
Affiliation : ¹ Pediatrics Department, Phaholpolpayuhasena Hospital, Kanchanaburi, Thailand; ² Quality Improvement Center, Phaholpolpayuhasena Hospital, Kanchanaburi, Thailand
Objective: To evaluate the outcomes of using a Pediatric Early Warning Score (PEWS) application with an automatic alert system compared to the traditional paper-based PEWS in hospitalized pediatric patients.
Materials and Methods: A retrospective cohort study was conducted in pediatric patients aged 1 month to 15 years admitted to the pediatric ward of Phaholpolpayuhasena Hospital between September 9, 2022, and September 8, 2023. Patients were enrolled by systematic sampling, ordered by date of admission: the control group was evaluated with paper-based PEWS in the first 6 months, and the intervention group was evaluated with a PEWS application in the last 6 months. Outcomes included mortality rate, unplanned intensive care unit (ICU) admission, emergency resuscitation, interpretation accuracy of PEWS items, and response time.
Results: A total of 350 patients (175 in each group) were included, yielding 13,020 PEWS recordings in total (6,432 from the paper group and 6,588 from the application group). The PEWS application group had significantly lower rates of adverse events (2.29% vs. 10.86%, p=0.001), unplanned ICU admissions (0.57% vs. 6.86%, p=0.002), and unplanned intubations (0.57% vs. 5.14%, p=0.010). Interpretation accuracy of PEWS items was substantially higher in the application group (88.00% vs. 12.00%, p<0.001). The average response time was significantly shorter in the application group (24.36±25.72 minutes vs. 47.64±26.42 minutes, p<0.001).
Conclusion: The use of a PEWS application with an automatic alert system was associated with reduced adverse events, improved interpretation accuracy of PEWS items, and faster response times compared to traditional paper-based PEWS in hospitalized pediatric patients. This supports the potential benefits of implementing automated PEWS systems for pediatric inpatient monitoring.
Received 24 August 2025 | Revised 19 April 2026 | Accepted 21 May 2026
J Med Assoc Thai 2026;109(10):801-7
Keywords : Pediatric Early Warning Score (PEWS); Application; Automatic alert system; Hospitalized pediatric patients
All Articles
Download
