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Reducing length of stay in the ICU of a community hospital

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Interim ICU leadership helps decrease infection rates and LOS

A 17-bed ICU of a not-for-profit community hospital was struggling with high length of stay (LOS) and infection rates, staff turnover, and an inability to implement sustainable change.They looked to Philips Blue Jay Consulting to provide a long-term interim ICU leader and help reduce LOS and infection rates, implement performance improvement initiatives, improve staff retention.

Results* of the client engagement included:

Reduced LOS from 4.5 to 2.2 days (51% improvement).
Reduced central line-associated bloodstream infections (CLABSI) from 10 to 0.
Reduced central line utilization rates from 0.529 to 0.294.
Increased nursing staff retention rate of 83%.

Improving patient and staff satisfaction, along with ICU performance

A strategic approach with hands-on implementation

Assessment

As the interim ICU Manager, our consultant made immediate progress to increase staff morale and recommended an overall operational assessment of the ICU. All key stakeholders – including ICU staff, leaders, and providers – were interviewed and observed to document observations of processes, patient and staff flow, and areas of concern.

Data was analyzed to assess the flow and environment and identify insights for improvement opportunities. The ICU had inconsistent criteria for intensivist consult which contributed to the high LOS.

Based on the assessment as well as national leading practices and evidenced-based literature, a list of prioritized recommendations was created and new unit goals were agreed upon. Next, a process improvement implementation plan with supporting leadership structure was developed.

Four assistant supervisors were hired and participated in a weekly training and development program to support the new goals of the unit and the organization. A unit based practice council was established; the first of its kind in the organization. A list of practice issues were prioritized by this group and action plans developed to be reviewed every two weeks with the Chief Nursing Officer (CNO) and the interim leader.

Implementation
During the 55-week engagement, several initiatives were implemented including:

A hand hygiene program was established based on The Joint Commission tst (Targeted Solutions Tool) program1 with hand sanitizer stations installed at each ICU room and unit entry;
TheraWORX® bathing every 24 hours; urinary catheter care monitored;
Deep cleaning and painting of the unit; biweekly rounds with Environmental Services;
Interdisciplinary daily rounding on all patients; intensivist consult on every patient;
Clinical practice policies were updated;
Severe sepsis screening with a sepsis order set were added;
Enhanced communication with twice daily change-of-shift huddles, frequent and routine staff meetings, and a twice monthly staff newsletter;
A Progressive Care Unit adjacent to the ICU was added;
A mobility program initiated with business case for dedicated physical therapist coverage.

Results*

At the end of the engagement, results* included:

Reduced LOS from 4.5 to 2.2 days (51% improvement) in the first quarter following the engagment.
Reduced central line associated bloodstream infections (CLABSI) from 10 to 0.
Reduced central line utilization rates from 0.529 to 0.294.
Hired 38 RN staff with an increased nursing staff retention rate of 83%.
TheraWORX bathing conducted on 100% of patients.

In addition, AHRQ (Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality) Patient Safety Survey results specific to the ICU included:

Supervisor/Manager expectations and actions promoting patient safety: 83% vs 73% for the hospital overall.
Teamwork within unit: 90% vs 85% for the hospital overall.
I am knowledgeable about the hospital’s quality initiatives: 97%.
My Supervisor treats me with respect: 92%.

Improving patient and staff satisfaction, along with ICU performance

* Results are rates measured prior to this engagement compared to rates measured at the end or after the engagement was completed. Results from case studies are not predictive of results in other cases. Results in other cases may vary.

¹ The Joint Commission Hand Hygiene tst Program, link.

TheraWORX is a copyright of Avadim Technologies, Inc.

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Meet our team

Ryan Oglesby, PhD, MHA, RN, CEN, CFRN, NEA-BC

Principal and ED Assessments Lead

Ryan brings 20+ years of clinical and administrative experience in pre-hospital, emergency, trauma, and critical care settings. He has helped clients reduce ED patient walkout and door-to-triage rates while improving patient experience.

JoAnn Lazarus, MSN, RN, CEN

Principal and Practice Operations Lead

JoAnn brings 40+ years’ experience in ED leadership and helping hospitals improve efficiency. She has led many change projects in EDs to improve process flow including implementation of fast track and middle track processes with reduction in LWBS.

Recent success

Customer story

Regained trauma certification in 6 months
Learn more
Customer story

79% reduced LWBS for $2.8m in collectable revenue
Learn more

Related practice area

Emergency Department Optimization

A hands-on approach to improving process efficiency in the emergency department, to reduce left without being seen (LWBS) and increase collectible revenue.

Read more

‹ Healthcare consulting

Reducing length of stay in the ICU of a community hospital

Contact information

Contact details

Company details

Interim ICU leadership helps decrease infection rates and LOS

Improving patient and staff satisfaction, along with ICU performance

A strategic approach with hands-on implementation

Assessment

Implementation During the 55-week engagement, several initiatives were implemented including:

Results*

At the end of the engagement, results* included:

In addition, AHRQ (Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality) Patient Safety Survey results specific to the ICU included:

Improving patient and staff satisfaction, along with ICU performance

Meet our team

Recent success

Regained trauma certification in 6 months

79% reduced LWBS for $2.8m in collectable revenue

Related practice area

Implementation
During the 55-week engagement, several initiatives were implemented including: