Institute’s Recommendations Improve Patient Care
Mercy Medical Center-Merced is participating in a program to prevent ventilator-associated pneumonia, and hospital officials say the incidence of pneumonia in ventilator patients has declined as a result, the Merced Sun-Star reports.
The hospital is taking part in the Institute for Healthcare Improvement's 100,000 Lives Campaign, which started in 2004 to prevent at least 100,000 hospital deaths that otherwise would have happened because of errors and infections at hospitals. The campaign focuses on six different areas -- including preventing pneumonia, preventing different types of infections and stopping medication errors.
Mercy Vice President of Medical Affairs Lynn Cooman said no cases of ventilator-associated pneumonia have been reported at the hospital over the last 16 months. Previously, the hospital had one to two cases of pneumonia in ventilator patients each month, Cooman said.
Although Mercy is only reporting the pneumonia statistics, the hospital has put in place all of the recommendations from the campaign, such as keeping a complete list of medications a patient is taking with the patient at all times to prevent medical errors. The hospital also developed a rapid response team that examines patients when nurses believe their condition has worsened.
Hospital officials said the recommendations will stay in place after the campaign ends (Reiter, Merced Sun-Star, 8/16).