Elkhart General Participates in Five Million Lives Campaign

Elkhart General has joined the Institute for Healthcare Improvement’s 5 Million Lives Campaign, a national campaign to dramatically reduce incidents of medical harm in U.S. hospitals.

“The 5 Million Lives Campaign asks hospitals to improve the care they provide in order to protect patients,” reports Jean Putnam, RN, Director of Continuous Quality Improvement. “The Institute estimates that 15 million incidents of patient harm occur in U.S. Hospitals each year. The collective goal of the campaign is to protect patients from five million incidents of medical harm over a 24-month period, ending December 9, 2008.

The Campaign was announced on December 12, 2006 and has been endorsed by the American Hospital Association (AHA), the American Nurses Association (ANA), the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) and the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations (JCAHO).

The Campaign builds upon the success of the 100,000 Lives Campaign, in which 3,100 participating hospitals reduced inpatient deaths by an estimated 122,000 in 18 months through overall improvement in care, including improvement associated with six interventions recommended by the initiative. The new Campaign will promote the adoption of up to 12 improvements in care that can save lives and reduce patient injuries.

IHI defines “medical harm” as unintended physical injury resulting from or contributed to by medical care, including the absence of indicated medical treatment, that requires additional monitoring, treatment or hospitalization, or results in death. (Please consult www.ihi.org for a detailed definition).

• Prevent Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus Aureus (MRSA) infection...by reliably implementing scientifically proven infection control practices throughout the hospital.
• Reduce harm from high-alert medications...starting with a focus on anticoagulants, sedatives, narcotics, and insulin.
• Reduce surgical complications...by reliably implementing the changes in care recommended by the Surgical Care Improvement Project (SCIP).
• Prevent pressure ulcers...by reliably using science-based guidelines for prevention of this serious and common complication.
• Deliver reliable, evidence-based care for congestive heart failure…to reduce readmissions.
• Get Boards on board…by defining and spreading new and leveraged processes for hospital Boards of Directors, so they can become far more effective in accelerating the improvement of care.
• Deploy Rapid Response Teams… at the first sign of patient decline – and before catastrophic cardiac or respiratory event.
• Deliver reliable, evidence-based care for acute myocardial infarction…to prevent deaths from heart attack.
• Prevent adverse drug events…by reconciling patient medications at every transition point in care.
• Prevent central line infections…by implementing a series of interdependent, scientifically grounded steps.
• Prevent surgical site infections…by following a series of steps, including reliable, timely administration of correct perioperative antibiotics.
• Prevent ventilator-associated pneumonia…by implementing a series of interdependent, scientifically grounded steps.

The 5 Million Lives Campaign is made possible through the support of America’s Blue Cross and Blue Shield health plans, the Cardinal Health Foundation, the Blue Shield of California Foundation, the Aetna Foundation, Baxter International, Inc., and Abbott Point-of-Care. This initiative builds on work begun in the 100,000 Lives Campaign, supported by Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts, the Cardinal Health Foundation, the Rx Foundation, the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation, The Colorado Trust, the Blue Shield of California Foundation, the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, Baxter International, Inc., The Leeds Family, and the David Calkins Memorial Fund.

The Institute for Healthcare Improvement is a not-for-profit organization leading the improvement of health care throughout the world. Founded in 1991 and based in Cambridge, MA, IHI is a catalyst for change, cultivating innovative concepts for improving patient care and implementing programs for putting those ideas into action. Thousands of health care providers, including many of the finest hospitals in the world, participate in IHI’s groundbreaking work.

More information about the 5 Million Lives Campaign can be found online at www.ihi.org.