LOS ANGELES--(BUSINESS WIRE)--To call urgent attention to how new approaches to workflow monitoring can reduce preventable adverse hospital events, Vitalacy today released a patient safety white paper, “Finding New Ways to Prevent Healthcare-Acquired Infections and Conditions,” for Patient Safety Awareness Week.
“The continued increase of healthcare-acquired infections and conditions may be the most vexing patient safety challenge facing healthcare organizations today,” said Vitalacy Chairman and CEO Bahram Nour-Omid. Headquartered in Los Angeles, Vitalacy works with organizations wishing to reduce these infections and conditions by implementing workflow monitoring solutions that improve the efficacy of nurse rounding and hand hygiene compliance.
Among the healthcare-acquired infections and conditions (HAIs and HACs) that are preventable using better workflow monitoring are patient falls, pressure ulcers, venous thromboembolism (VTE), central line-associated bloodstream infections (CLABSI), catheter-associated urinary tract infections (CAUTI), surgical site infection after colon surgery (SSI: Colon), methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA), and Clostridium difficile (C. diff.)
Paper explores the pros and cons of automated monitoring systems vs. direct observation
The Vitalacy paper explores how automated 24/7 monitoring systems using workflow tracking technology can improve hand hygiene compliance, reduce infection rates, and better monitor patients at risk for HACs such as falls. The paper compares automated monitoring to the widely used alternative of direct observation, noting that automated monitoring can track patient safety compliance and produce useful, actionable data.
The Vitalacy system is an automated solution that combines Internet of Things (IoT) technology with artificial intelligence (AI) to provide a continual, real-time “safety sphere” that analyzes caregiver workflow through the use of bluetooth-enabled wristbands, location sensors, and mobile and web apps. These capabilities enable healthcare organizations to observe care provider activities that, if performed consistently, can reduce HACs and HAIs. Demos with a product specialist can be scheduled online.
Case study describes how Vitalacy system improved compliance and reduced infections
The paper presents a case study describing how the Vitalacy automated monitoring system was implemented in about half of the medical and surgical beds of an academic medical center with a higher-than-average HAI rate. The system increased the number of compliance observations from 1,500 to more than 225,000 per quarter, improved compliance from 30 percent to 70 percent, and drove down infections for two consecutive quarters.
The paper provides detailed descriptions of how challenges faced during implementation were overcome and also gives advice on how to achieve organizational buy-in for automated compliance systems.
The caregivers at the medical center provided feedback and ideas that helped Vitalacy develop ways to evolve and enhance its system. For example, their ideas led to the development of Vitalacy’s purposeful nurse rounding solution, which was implemented for the first time at this medical center. The module identifies which staff member completed rounding in each room, at what time, and for how long. By viewing activity by staff and room, managers can ensure that care providers get alerts when patients have not been visited as necessary.
HAIs and HACs contribute significantly to mortality, morbidity and costs
HAIs and HACs contribute significantly to inpatient mortality and morbidity and excess operating costs. About 1.7 million HAIs occur in U.S. hospitals each year, resulting in 99,000 deaths and an estimated $35 billion to $45 billion in healthcare costs in 2007 dollars, the Centers for Disease Prevention and Control (CDC) reports. The cost of caring for patients afflicted by illnesses caused by HAIs and HACs lead to even more costs within the healthcare system: legal liabilities, reimbursement penalties, higher mortality rates, and more.
About Vitalacy
Vitalacy delivers patented technology solutions that empower hospitals and other healthcare organizations with data and guidance to reach their patient safety goals. Vitalacy measures events impacting patient care providing valuable and sustainable insight to improve patient satisfaction, operational effectiveness, and financial results. For more information on Vitalacy, contact the organization at 11859 Wilshire Blvd., Suite 500, Los Angeles, Calif., 90025, info@vitalacy.com, Vitalacy.com.
