HealthCare Benchmarks and Quality Improvement articles from May 2004

HealthCare Benchmarks and Quality Improvement archives from May 2004

Benchmarking and safety: natural fit if you know what to do with data: misreading results, using wrong benchmarks is formula for failure.(health care industry)
May 1, 2004... Given the steady drumbeat for improving patient safety from diverse corners of the QI world, it's only logical for quality professionals to use all the tools at their disposal--and that includes benchmarking. However, experts warn, while...

Six Sigma success: 100% compliance in 3 months: 'midproject report' shows dramatic improvements.
May 1, 2004... A Six Sigma project at Sewickley (PA) Valley Hospital has achieved dramatic results--including 100% compliance in one process--in just three short months. The project is part of an overall initiative in the Heritage Valley Health System...

Hospitalists save $2.5 million and decrease LOS: improvements achieved in first two years.
May 1, 2004... Baptist Hospital in Pensacola, FL, winner of this year's Malcolm Baldrige award for quality, has saved $2.56 million in two years as a result of its inpatient management program. The program, developed and operated by Cogent Healthcare Inc., an...

AHRQ tool designed to improve CAP clinical care: decision-support tool is evidence based.(Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality)(community-acquired pneumonia)
May 1, 2004... The Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) in Rockville, MD, has unveiled a clinical decision-support tool for personal digital assistants (PDAs) that is designed to help clinicians deliver evidence-based medicine at the point of...

Leapfrog standards are hard for hospitals to meet: some hospitals trying less costly alternatives.
May 1, 2004... While The Leapfrog Group's ambitious campaign to improve patient safety in hospitals has sparked national awareness, few hospitals are close to meeting the group's standards for computerized prescriptions, specially trained intensive care unit...