...to all patients without spreading hospital acquired infections to patients that were previously free from certain diseases. Clostridium difficile infections (CDI) are a common occurrence within health care settings and can cause many complications, increasing length of stay, and could even cause death. The goal of this paper is to provide a policy to make changes to the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) at Mercy Hospital in Coon Rapids, Minnesota. The ICU has struggled with preventing and eliminating the spread of CDI from patient to patient. The unit has implemented many changes to increase hand hygiene, improve cleaning techniques of equipment, and increase staff knowledge and awareness without improvement of the CDI rates. By reviewing policies provided by the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) there can be changes made to improve the CDI rates at Mercy Hospital. Policy changes can be implemented and staff can be educated on proper hygiene techniques and other policies that the AHRQ will provide. The ultimate goal is to eliminate hospital acquired CDI’s and with the policy changes this can be a possibility. Policy Implementation The main focus area for this patient safety policy change will be focused on the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) at Mercy Hospital. Mercy Hospital is part of the Allina Health organization which serves the northeastern suburbs located in Coon Rapids, Minnesota. Mercy is a level II trauma hospital with an estimated 255 inpatient beds...
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...Reducing Rehospitalizations Elizabeth A Goebel Drexel University Reducing Rehospitalizations Change has become a major buzz word in nursing; everything is changing on a daily basis. If it isn’t the evolution in technology, changes in the reimbursement process, it is introducing new initiatives to reduce rehospitalizations and ultimately improve patient outcomes. Hospitals are under tremendous pressure to reduce their avoidable rehospitalization rates. In October 2012, hospitals started being penalized for having higher readmission rates. Jenks estimates that readmissions within thirty days of discharge cost Medicare more than seventeen billion dollars annually (Jenks, Williams, and Coleman, 2009). There is no doubt that readmissions following a hospitalization are very costly. This issue is critical in nursing today because skyrocketing costs can affect salaries and poor outcomes can be blamed on poor care. The quest for better outcomes proves to be a collaborative effort between hospitals, physicians, case managers, therapists, social workers and caregivers. In May of 2008 St Luke’s Hospital in Cedar Rapids, Iowa implemented a transitions in care program. They understood that the hand off from hospital to home was not working effectively. They focused on being sure that the patient as well as the care givers understood the patients diagnosis, plan of care and plan for follow up care with their doctors. They used the “teach back” method, by having the patients...
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...acquire. Baccalaureate prepared nurses (BSN) are prepared with similar training as the ADN and diploma nurse but they have much more extensive education and training. The BSN possesses a broader, well rounded perspective of nursing history and theory which will help them to excel at their role as an RN. While the ADN and diploma programs produce nurses that are fully capable of practicing at a basic level of nursing, the competencies of the BSN are more widespread and extensive, and therefore produce a nurse better prepared to take on the changes and challenges in an evolving healthcare system. Different Nursing Programs Continuing education for nurses has been offered since the practice was introduced many years ago. As is/was the case now and back then, enrollment in undergraduate and postgraduate programs remained lower than the AD and diploma programs. Some reasons why individuals have not pursued higher education are due to the financial and time demands. The AD programs allow for a more diverse student nurse population; the cost and time frame make it very attainable for those of all socioeconomic backgrounds. The BSN offered at colleges and universities takes longer, four years,...
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...S w 910M51 CLOSING THE GAP – THE CHANGING HOME CARE ENVIRONMENT (A) Rida Elias wrote this case under the supervision of Professor Roderick E. White solely to provide material for class discussion. The authors do not intend to illustrate either effective or ineffective handling of a managerial situation. The authors may have disguised certain names and other identifying information to protect confidentiality. Richard Ivey School of Business Foundation prohibits any form of reproduction, storage or transmission without its written permission. Reproduction of this material is not covered under authorization by any reproduction rights organization. To order copies or request permission to reproduce materials, contact Ivey Publishing, Richard Ivey School of Business Foundation, The University of Western Ontario, London, Ontario, Canada, N6A 3K7; phone (519) 661-3208; fax (519) 661-3882; e-mail cases@ivey.uwo.ca. Copyright © 2010, Richard Ivey School of Business Foundation Version: (A) 2010-07-09 It was nearing the end of another busy day, and Connie Clerici’s last appointment had been cancelled. Clerici was glad to have some time to reflect on both her business and her personal situation before the meeting with her advisory board, scheduled for the next day, September 25, 2009. She knew the business environment of her company, Closing the Gap (CTG), continued to change, presenting opportunities and challenges. She wanted to be prepared for a productive discussion...
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...disorder, schizophrenia, borderline personality disorder,[ Paris, J (June 2002). "Chronic suicidality among patients with borderline personality disorder".Psychiatric services (Washington, D.C.) 53 (6): 738–42.doi:10.1176/appi.ps.53.6.738. PMID 12045312.1]alcoholism, or drug abuse (Hawton K, van Heeringen K (April 2009). "Suicide".Lancet 373 (9672): 1372–81. doi:10.1016/S0140-6736(09)60372-X. PMID 19376453.) There are growing concerns about the rate of suicide in Jamaica. Government-compiled data reveal that the number of Jamaicans who attempt to take their own lives is alarmingly high. Between 1999 and 2009, there were 627 reported cases of suicide. Persons from the 10-19 and 20-29 age brackets accounted for the lion's share of attempted suicide cases, with the 30-34 age cohort not far off the pace. Persons in the age 10-19 cohort accounted for 619 cases of attempted suicide, while 575 of those aged 20 to 29 tried to kill themselves while persons in the 46-and-over age cohort account for the bulk of actual suicides recorded between 1999 and 2009..(Dr. Donovan Thomas et al Confronting Suicide: Helping Teens at Risk | Publisher | Youth House Publishers, 2002 | ISBN | 9766104832, 9789766104832 | Length | 172 pages | In an analysis of the data on suicides in Jamaica from 1974 to 2009, Thomas, the founder and president of the suicide intervention organisation Choose Life International, wrote in his book that "the total number of suicides recorded over an eight-year period, between...
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...URINARY TRACT INFECTION Elizabeth Quartey Abstract According to the CDC estimates in 2002 there were 1.7 million Healthcare-Associated Infections (HAI), and 99,000 HAI- associated deaths in the hospital. The report stated that the four largest categories of HAI, responsible for more than 80% of all reported HAI, are central line-associated bloodstream infections (CLABSI, 14%), ventilator-associated pneumonia (VAP, 15%), surgical site infections (SSI, 22%), and catheter-associated urinary tract infections (CAUTI, 32%). HAI are a great financial costs to health care facilities. The Centers for disease Control and Prevention (CDC) estimates the medical cost of HAI in the U.S. hospitals as $6.65 billion in 2007, and that number has increased to almost $10 billion a year currently. Statement and Significance of the Problem One in 20 patients who are admitted to a hospital will be a victim to an infectious agent they are exposed to during their hospitalization according to the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) (Goodman, Brenda, 201, Hospital-Acquired Infections cost $10 Billion a year). The five most common infections are surgical site infections, infections associated with the use of devices like central lines, catheters, ventilators and clostridium dificile are costing the health care System in the USA almost $10 billion a year to treat. In the article Vitamin D has the potential to reduce the risk of Hospital-Acquired Infections, the writer...
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...Principles of Healthcare Reimbursement Anne B. Casto, RHIA, CCS Elizabeth Layman, PhD, RHIA, CCS, FAHIMA Copyright ©2006 by the American Health Information Management Association. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without the prior written permission of the publisher. ISBN 1-58426-070-X AHIMA Product No. AB202006 Ken Zielske, Director of Publications Susan Hull, MPH, RHIA, CCS, CCS-P, Technical Reviewer Marcia Loellbach, MS, Project Editor Elizabeth Lund, Assistant Editor Melissa Ulbricht, Editorial/Production Coordinator All information contained within this book, including Web sites and regulatory information, was current and valid as of the date of publication. However, Web page addresses and the information on them may change or disappear at any time and for any number of reasons. The user is encouraged to perform his or her own general Web searches to locate any site addresses listed here that are no longer valid. AHIMA strives to recognize the value of people from every racial and ethnic background as well as all genders, age groups, and sexual orientations by building its membership and leadership resources to reflect the rich diversity of the American population. AHIMA encourages the celebration and promotion of human diversity through education, mentoring, recognition, leadership, and other programs. American...
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...South colonies. Sarah Drummond, Sarah Grendon and Lydia Chisman came to prominence during Bacon Rebellion as a strong rulers and advocates of their husbands. Male dominance began to weaken. Chapter 2. Women were legally vested a right to operate business and perform jobs such as merchants, printers and doctors, but were paid much less for performing the same duties as men. Ann Hutchinson, who opposed Puritan authority, was the most famous dissident in early colonial history. She was banished from Massachusetts and moved to New York where she found her death due to Indian attack. There were many other strong-minded women living in colonies. Hannah Dustan was taken captive and could escape, returning home with scalps of Indians. Elizabeth Tozier pretended to be a man so she could protect the...
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...paper is as follows.Firstly,discuss the difference between criminal and civil law,and then analyse the overlap of the two systems.finally,give some advice to a victim of a civil wrong and a crime. Body 1. distinction between criminal and civil law Criminal Law is a kind of public law, which “governs relationships between individuals and the government, and those relationships between individuals which are of direct concern to the society.” The criminal law exist to punish a person that who have committed criminal offenses. In order to punish criminals and deter crime and others they remain stable state and society. "In public law, mandatory rules prevail. Laws concerning relationships between individuals belong to private law. ” (Elizabeth A. Martin ,2003) Civil law is private law. “In England and Wales, civil law means non-criminal law. The law relating to civil wrongs and quasi-contracts is part of the civil law. “Civil law deals with the disputes between a person, organizations, or between the two, in which compensation is awarded to the victim. The main purpose of the civil law is to compensate individuals who have suffered loss or injury by the wrongful actions of other person. Civil law is different from criminal law, because it emphasises more upon punishment than on dispute resolution. (Glanville Williams,1982) The essence of the distinction of criminal and civil law is different aims. "The difference between civil law and criminal law turns on the difference between...
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...Case Study of John Hinckley Janeen Tipton PSY/410 July 22, 2012 Dr. Johnson Case Study of John Hinckley In the field of psychology, a science evolved nearly 100 years ago, named Abnormal Psychology. This field addresses those with mental illnesses/disorders with diagnosing, treatment, and other forms of therapies such as behavioral and cognitive therapies. In order to properly diagnose an individual with any form of disorder, if one exists, it is imperative that the client divulge all feelings, behaviors, thoughts, and emotions for a proper diagnosis. There are individuals who are predisposed for certain disorders which are found at an early age, and then there are others that symptoms seem to arise later in life such as in the case of John Hinckley, who also failed at being honest about symptoms, behaviors, thoughts which due to this, proper psychiatric care could not be implemented leading to the attempted assassination of Ronald Reagan, a former U.S. President. John Hinckley’s Childhood John Hinckley had what is to be considered a normal childhood as that of his peers. By the age of nine years Hinckley and his family had moved twice within the same State; however the second move at nine years of age seemed hard for Hinckley as he lost some of his friends and social status (Meyer, Chapman, & Weaver, 2009, p. 325). After graduating high school in 1973, he moved again to Colorado only to return in 1974 to attend college. Hinckley only...
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...UNIVERSITY FOR DEVELOPMENT STUDIES,GHANA CENTER FOR CONTINUING EDUCATION AND INTERDISCIPLINARY RESEARCH (CCEIR), NAVRONGO A PROPOSAL BY MUMUNI ELIASU For A MASTER OF ART DEGREE IN ENVIRONMENTAL SECURITY AND LIVELIHOOD CHANGE INTRODUCTION 1.2 Background Since the beginning of civilization of mankind, man found the use of minerals as indispensable material in sustaining life with the “lion cave” being the oldest known mine from Swaziland which proved to be about 43,000 years old. Hungary and the Ancient Egypt also mined flint and malachite respectively for weaponry tools and ornaments. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mining) Mining generally is the extraction of valuable mineral deposits or other geological materials from the ground or earth. These deposits could be gold, bauxite, manganese, precious metals, diamond, oil, coal, limestone and many others. Any material that cannot be grown through agricultural processes created artificially in a laboratory or factory is normally mined. Mining normally involves prospecting for the mineral and final exploration if found, in the form of surface (strip) or underground mining. Surface mining is when the soil and rocks overlying the mineral deposits are removed. It is used when deposits of commercially useful minerals or rocks are found near the surface; that is, where the overburden(surface material covering the valuable deposit) is relatively thin or the material of interest is structurally unsuitable...
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...Case Study 13 Analysis Elizabeth Sapp University of North Carolina at Charlotte The situational analysis of Emanuel Medical Center (EMC) reveals a not-for profit independent hospital located in Turlock, California that is encountering financial troubles as it struggles to remain open. Changes in federal regulations such as the implementation of the EMTALA (Emergency Medical Treatment and Active Labor Act) laws and lower reimbursement rates for federally run insurance programs, changes in service area demographics, and the evolution of the services that locally competing hospitals offer have all contributed to five consecutive negative operating margins for EMC. (Harris, Vogt, & Gilinsky, 2004). Strategic Options Strategic issues are those events that affect an organization and its position within its environment. In the case of EMC the President and CEO, Robert Moen will need to discuss the options available to the hospital with other leaders through strategic planning. This is a process of developing steps for an organization to accomplish its mission and vision through strategic strategies. To make this process a success analyzing and understanding the situation is done by performing an external and internal environmental analysis along with refining the organizations’ directional strategies. In the end, EMC has five possible strategic options including, merging the hospital, selling the hospital, closing the ED, closing the hospital, or doing nothing and trying to...
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...Part 1 Study of the Law in General Chapter 1 LEARNING OBJECTIVES After reading this chapter, the learner should be able to: 1. Differentiate between public and private law. 2. Compare and contrast contract and tort law. 3. Compose a scenario that illustrates the difference between the substantive and procedural aspects of criminal law. 4. Identify and explain the differences between various sources of law. 5. Describe the branches of government and their roles in creating, administering, and enforcing law. 6. Explain the process of how a bill becomes a law. 7. List and describe quasi-legal requirements to which health-care organizations are subject. KEY CONCEPTS Common law Conflict of laws Constitution Contract law Deeming authority Electronic case filing systems Felonies 2 Law Misdemeanors Ordinances Private law Procedural law Public law Res judicata Separation of powers Stare decisis Statutes Substantive law Tort law Words of authority Workings of the American Legal System INTRODUCTION As health care becomes more complex, the interplay between the law and health care increases. Government regulation of the health-care field continues almost without pause while lawsuits against health-care providers appear to increase. The interplay of these forces significantly affects the health information manager’s ability to manage patient-specific health information. Thus, the health information manager must possess a fundamental...
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... baffling world of literature, and is intended to provide the general student with basic experience in literary analysis. Additionally, I hope this class will lead you to a lifelong appreciation for (and engagement with) reading literature. Although this class features extensive reading and writing, it is not necessary for you to be a bookworm or a writing superstar to succeed in this class – if you are willing to put in the time and effort to study, faithfully attend class, keep up on your reading and writing assignments and engage in our discussions and activities, you should have no trouble thriving in this course. Learning...
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...TOPIC: LEADERSHIP STYLES CONTENts page INTRODUCTION 3 UNDERSTANDING ON LEADERSHIP STYLES 3-9 DISCUSSION ON LEADERSHIP STYLE OF A LEADER 10-11 THAT IS APPARENT IN THE EFFECTIVE PROVISION OF HEALTHCARE DISCUSSION ON LEADERSHIP STYLE OF A LEADER 11-12 THAT FACILITATES POSITIVE STAFF DEVELOPMENT CONCLUSION 12-13 INTRODUCTION in today ever rapid changing and challenging healthcare environment, nurses are required to develop their leadership skills where effective leadership styles they choose to deliver high quality care with improved patient safety outcome (Treguno et al, 2009); healthy work environments (Shirey, 2009): job satisfaction (Heller et al, 2004; Sellgren et al, 2007); lower turnover rates (Gelinas and Bohen, 2000); and positive outcome for organization and patients (Wong and Cummings, 2007) and healthcare providers (Cummings et al, 2005). It must be emphasized that leadership should not be viewed as an optional role or function for nurses. Nurse leaders nowadays confronting challenges like new roles, new technology, financial constraints, greater participation...
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