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For Immediate Release
June 28, 2005
Mercy Among Hospitals that Decreased
Surgical Infections
Oklahoma City—Mercy Health Center was one of
56 hospitals across the nation that participated in a national
collaborative featured this past week in the American Journal of Surgery
for significantly reducing the rate of surgical infections.
“The American Journal of Surgery applauded us, along
with the other participating hospitals, for making changes that resulted
in better surgical outcomes for our patients,” said Ronda Pasley-Shaw,
RN, CIC, Mercy compliance supervisor of surgical services. “We took
proven research and developed ways to make it easier for clinical staff
to do the right thing so that patients have a lower chance of developing
any kind of infection. Because we’ve had such positive results with the
procedures we’ve developed, everyone from the Mayo Clinic to Vanderbilt
Medical Center to Maui Memorial Medical Center to Providence Alaska
Medical Center has called us to find out exactly what changes we made.”
The quality improvement project, of which Mercy was
a part, was co-sponsored by the Centers for Disease Control and
Prevention and the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services.
“We were able to show that if patients continue
antibiotics beyond 24 hours after their surgery, they are more likely to
have infection with antibiotic-resistant bacteria,” said Pasley-Shaw.
“Taking part in this national initiative helped us demonstrate how our
physicians and co-workers can study, test and implement the latest
knowledge available to produce rapid improvements here at Mercy.”
“Of 56 teams, Mercy made the most significant
changes and improvements,” said Rosa Johnson of Qualis Health, one of
the project’s coordinators in Seattle, Washington. By implementing best
practices and redesigning systems, Mercy minimized the risk of surgical
infections.
“We have been recognized for achieving nearly 100
percent compliance in the study population with measures that reduce the
risk of surgical infections,” said Dr. Mark Johnson, Mercy chief medical
officer. Through the collaborative, Mercy implemented processes that
reduce surgical infection including administering the right antibiotics
at the right time, keeping patients warm during surgery and clipping
body hair instead of shaving it.
“We have created a safer environment for all
patients to have surgery,” said Pasley-Shaw, “and together as a group of
56 hospitals, our work has spread to every state and now hundreds of
thousands of patients have experienced safer care. We moved research
from the books to the patient bedside.”
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