Organizational Processes Affected by the Innovation

Innovations

Use of Lean Performance Improvement Processes Significantly Improves On-Time Surgical Starts in the Inpatient Setting 01/15/08

Dupont Hospital introduced the principles of the Lean production model to its surgery department, leading to more than a doubling of the percentage of on-time surgery starts, from 27 to 66 percent.

Team Triage Reduces Emergency Department Walkouts, Improves Patient Care 01/14/08

The emergency department at Vanderbilt University Medical Center established a program in which patients are quickly assessed in a triage area by a team consisting of a physician, a nurse, and a paramedic.

Data-Driven Community Education and Defibrillator Placement Increase Bystander-Administered CPR and Cardiac Arrest Survival Rates in Atlanta 01/14/08

The American Heart Association spearheaded a public education campaign (called “Restart Atlanta's Hearts”) to teach Atlanta area residents to identify individuals who are experiencing cardiac arrest and to act quickly to save them.

Remote Viewing of Neonatal Intensive Care Unit Babies by Mother Promotes Bonding, Potentially Improves Infants' Long-Term Outcomes 01/11/08

Remote viewing of neonatal intensive care unit infants reduces maternal anxiety and promotes mother–infant bonding.

Better Integration of Home Health Aides Into the Health Care Team Improves Patient Functionality 01/11/08

A team-building program at the largest home care agency in the country integrated home health aides into the health care team and resulted in enhanced functional status for patients, including being better able to move independently from a bed to a wheelchair or chair and better able to walk without support.

Routine Cultures, Real-Time Alerts, and Immediate Precautions Reduce Intensive Care Unit MRSA Infections 01/10/08

Nurses at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center Presbyterian Hospital routinely monitor all patients admitted to intensive care units for methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus colonization from admission to discharge.

Multipronged Active Surveillance System Eliminates Common Infection for Patients in Transplant Intensive Care Unit 01/10/08

A multipronged active surveillance program for vancomycin-resistant Enterococcus (VRE) significantly reduced VRE transmission rates in a 12-bed transplant intensive care unit.

Multifaceted Hospital Program Implemented Over a Decade Leads to Lower Nurse Turnover and Length of Stay, Improved Patient Outcomes, and Enhanced Revenues 01/09/08

Over a 10-year period, Hackensack University Medical Center designed a set of strategies to improve nurse satisfaction, reduce length of stay, and enhance case management for selected conditions, leading to improvements including reductions in nurse turnover and length of stay.

Electronic Health Record–Facilitated Care Process Redesign Enhances Access to Care, Reduces Hospitalizations and Costs for Patients With Chronic Illnesses 01/08/08

The Marshfield Clinic is using electronic tools to facilitate care process redesign for patients with chronic illnesses, leading to enhanced quality and access to care, fewer hospitalizations and adverse events, and lower costs.

Comprehensive Palliative Care Program Improves End-of-Life Care and Pain Control for Terminally Ill Patients 01/08/08

Hoag Memorial Hospital Presbyterian established a comprehensive end-of-life program that includes pain control and emotional support for patients unlikely to survive the next few days; a multidisciplinary palliative care that assists physicians who are treating dying patients; compassionate care for parents who lose children before or after birth; and support for hospital staff who work with dying patients.

Innovations

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