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The Problem Wait times in the hospital's inpatient rehabilitation center were unacceptable; some patients were refusing physical and occupational therapy as a result. Patient satisfaction scores reflected the frustration patients felt. The Solution Using Lean methodology, St. John's…
The organization was recording more patient falls than its leadership considered acceptable; approximately 25 falls each month. The nursing performance improvement department tracked falls and reported them to the Quality Indicator Project, a project of the Maryland Hospital Association, whose data…
The Problem Emergency departments across the nation are being stretched as more Americans rely on them for primary care. ED patient visits climbed 36 percent between 1999 and 2006, according to the CDC. As an urban safety-net hospital, Mount Sinai faced an even tougher challenge. When nearby…
The Problem In a 2008 medical staff satisfaction survey, 93 percent of Advocate Good Shepherd physicians indicated overall satisfaction with the hospital. However, the satisfaction rate for hospital laboratory turnaround times was between 50 percent and 60 percent. In addition, a discharge-time…
Harborview Medical Center - Community House CallsTo contribute to the well being of refugee and immigrant patients, families and communities through a partnership that promotes culturally competent care.
The ProblemMedication reconciliation—comparing a patient's medication orders to all medications the patient has been taking—helps to avoid medication errors such as omissions, duplications, dosing errors and drug interactions. The Institute for Safe Medication Practice estimates…
The Problem The results of blood tests are crucial to physician decision making. At St. Luke's, physicians expect to have lab test results available for morning rounds as early as 6 am. However, the phlebotomy team was regularly challenged to complete the early morning collection of blood…
The Problem St. Francis struggled getting non-emergent patients from the door to an ED bed in a timely manner. From December 2008 through February 2009, the average time from ED arrival to ED bed for ESI 3, 4 and 5 patients was 43 minutes. The Solution Under the Urgent Matters Collaborative, St.…