Press Release
The Cardiopulmonary Department, Critical Care Unit and Champion physicians celebrated Ventilator Acquired Pneumonia (VAP) reduction through IHI’s 100K lives Campaign on Wednesday June 21st. Only 25 hospitals out of 3,106 reported 0 VAPs during the campaign – Carteret General was one of the 25!
Carteret General Hospital Improves Patient Care and Prevents Unnecessary Deaths and Illness as Part of National Campaign to Save 100,000 Lives
June 14, 2006
Carteret General Hospital announced today that after 16 months of participation in the Institute for Healthcare Improvement’s landmark 100,000 Lives Campaign, they are dramatically improving how patients are cared for when they’re most at risk for infection, complications and adverse outcomes. Initially launched in December of 2004, the 100,000 Lives Campaign is the first-ever national campaign to promote saving a specified number of lives in hospitals by a certain date (June 14, 2006) through the implementation of proven, evidence-based, practices and procedures.
Carteret General Hospital has implemented the following practices:
- Activate a Rapid Response Team at the first sign that a patient’s condition is worsening and may lead to a more serious medical emergency.
- Prevent patients from dying of heart attacks by delivering evidence-based care, including appropriate administration of aspirin to prevent blood clots and Beta blockers to prevent further heart attacks.
- Prevent medication errors by ensuring that accurate and continually updated lists of patients’ medications are referenced during their hospital stay, particularly at transition points.
- Prevent patients who are receiving medicines and fluids through central lines from developing infections by following five steps, including proper hand washing and cleaning the patient’s skin with “chlorhexidine” (a type of soap).
- Prevent patients undergoing surgery from developing infections by following a series of steps, including the timely administration of antibiotics.
- Prevent patients on ventilators from developing pneumonia by following four steps, including raising the head of the patient’s bed between 30 and 40 degrees.
The accomplishments of the 100,000 Lives Campaign nationally include the enrollment of over 3,000 hospitals – comprising an estimated 85 percent of the acute care hospital beds in the country – and the creation of a national infrastructure of Campaign field offices that offer resources and support to participating hospitals throughout the US.
The Institute for Healthcare Improvement's 100,000 Lives Campaign has actually saved an estimated 122,342 lives, IHI President and Chief Executive Officer Donald Berwick announced today in Atlanta. Berwick said the data were generated using 2004 statistics as a baseline, and the final number was arrived at by calculating the number of expected deaths at participating hospitals minus the observed deaths after adjusting for changes in patient volume and risk. “Hospitals are not only demonstrating a dedication to saving lives during the 100,000 Lives Campaign,” said Dr. Berwick. “They are also implementing important changes in health care delivery that will reduce preventable illness and death beyond the Campaign’s June 2006 deadline.”
The 3,000 hospitals participating in the Campaign are located in all 50 states and the District of Columbia. Please visit www.ihi.org/campaign to learn more about the Campaign or to see a full list of participating hospitals (by state). The 100,000 Lives Campaign is supported through unrestricted philanthropy from Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts, the Cardinal Health Foundation, the Colorado Trust, Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation, the Rx Foundation, Baxter International, the Blue Shield of California Foundation, and the Leeds Family Foundation. National aggregate case-mix data and analysis supporting the Campaign’s “lives saved” calculation is generously provided, without restriction for use, by CareScience (a QUOVADX division) and Solucient.
The Institute for Healthcare Improvement (IHI) 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.
Carteret General Hospital is a 135-bed hospital serving Eastern North Carolina. The Hospital offers a full range of acute care, diagnostic and outpatient services including a comprehensive Cancer Center, CGH Imaging Center, Emergency Department and Birthing Center. Educational and Pursuit of Excellence Programs for Diabetes, Joint Surgery, Congestive Heart Failure, Stroke and Breast Cancer enhance the Hospital’s specialty services to a level that you would only expect at larger facilities. For additional information about Carteret General Hospital, call 252.808.6000 or visit our website at www.ccgh.org.