Vim & Vigor - Winter 2010 - Community Healthcare - (Page 56)

Hospitals unite G Panel tackles key issues affecting patient care and safety iving new meaning to the theory “there’s safety in numbers,” hospital administrators across Northwest Indiana have united to address key patient safety issues—ones that affect quality and consistency of services. Community Healthcare System, The Methodist Hospitals, Porter Health and the Sisters of St. Francis Health Services Inc. have joined forces to form the Northwest Indiana Patient Safety Coalition. This partnership, created with the goal of standardizing practices, is modeled after similar programs in other Indiana and Michigan counties. The group has the support of the Indiana Hospital Association and input from members of Purdue University Calumet’s nursing program. “We’ve come together to be proactive in the development of new patient safety programs,” says John Gorski, chief operating officer for the hospitals of Community Healthcare System. “By openly communicating about safety issues, we raise the level of awareness and can take action for the benefit of patients.” By ElisE sims Putting Safety MeaSureS in Place The hospital panel works to increase communication and enact uniform procedures that increase the quality of care. Participating hospitals have designated a team of safety leaders who include the chief nursing executive, chief medical officer and leaders of patient safety and quality committees, who attend monthly meetings. Community Healthcare System representatives include Betsy Abernathy, Patient Care Services; Cindy Bejasa, Quality/Risk Management; Sherry Brewer, Quality/Risk Management; Beth Clements, Pharmacy; John Danielson, M.D., Quality Management; Tammie Finn, Chief Nursing Officer; Jeannette Foley, Education Services; John Griep, M.D., Medical Staff Affairs; Diane Harrington, Quality/Risk Management; Debbie Krejci, Patient Care Services; Ronda McKay, Chief Nursing Officer; Linda Saroian, Pharmacy; Paula Swenson, Chief Nursing Officer; and Kathy Wrzalinski, Patient Care Services. At the meetings, teams identify and prioritize safety practices to be used in all hospitals. One project the safety coalition has addressed follows the results of a presentation by undergraduate nursing students from Purdue University Calumet. They analyzed how the existing color-coded system of wristbands could be adapted to lower the risk of patient care errors. Today, all Northwest Indiana hospitals use the same colored patient wristbands to indicate specific conditions. Other safety practices that the team has focused on include the following: • Standardizing surgical instruments and sponge-count policies • Precautions to guard against hospital-acquired infections • A patient education campaign centering on medication lists • Standardizing emergency codes between all hospitals • Setting guidelines for care while patients are in emergency rooms waiting for a hospital bed going electronic Moving forward, Gorski says the hospitals are also working to improve care by adding computerized medical record systems. Having an automated system with electronic records that can be accessed by doctors, nurses, pharmacists, physical therapists—anyone involved in your care—from their workstation or from handheld or mobile devices provides a more complete picture of an individual’s health history. This vital patient information will eventually be available to care providers regardless of what hospital patients may use. “Our goal is to provide the best customer service possible, to be consistent in best practices and to be more efficient in the care we provide,” says Gorski. “Having access to a complete medical record on each patient means everyone will be able to receive the best possible care.” 56 Vim & Vigor • W IN TER 2 010

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Vim & Vigor - Winter 2010 - Community Healthcare

Vim & Vigor - Winter 2010 - Community Healthcare
Contents
Community Message
Community Briefs
Special: Stroke of Luck
Healing Heroes from the Inside Out
A Step Ahead of PAD
Smart Moves
Miss Information
Stroke Sense
Gut Feelings
The Scoop on Stress
The Faces of Skin Cancer
Don’t Be Afraid of the Dark
A Natural Dilemma
17 Reasons to Work in Healthcare
Spotlight on St. Catherine Hospital
Spotlight on St. Mary Medical Center
Spotlight on Community Hospital
Hospitals Unite

Vim & Vigor - Winter 2010 - Community Healthcare