South Nassau Recognized for Quality, Patient Safety Initiatives

PRLog (Press Release) - Feb. 3, 2012 - South Nassau Communities Hospital earned special recognition for two of the entries it submitted for the Healthcare Association of New York State’s (HANYS) 2011 Pinnacle Award for Quality and Patient Safety program.  Established in 2001, the Pinnacle Award for Quality and Patient Safety recognizes significant achievement by members in quality improvement and patient safety.

South Nassau’s submissions, Improving Medication Management Following Hospital Discharge Through Patient-Centered Education and In-Home Monitoring and Reducing Sepsis Mortality Through Early Identification of Systemic Inflammatory Response Syndrome and Implementation of “Change Bundles”, were among just 10 that were awarded special recognition and scored in the top tenth percentile of the program.

The entries are featured in 2011 Profiles in Quality and Patient Safety, a compendium of submissions for the Pinnacle Award that meet publication standards.  “At South Nassau, we understand that it takes a team of committed, passionate and selfless individuals to achieve quality and improve standards,” said Sue Penque, PhD, RN, CNP, chief nursing officer and senior vice president of patient care services “These initiatives are just two examples of our endless pursuit to set the benchmark for safety and quality in the delivery of patient-centered healthcare.”

The goal of the initiative, Improving Medication Management Following Hospital Discharge Through Patient-Centered Education and In-Home Monitoring, was to enhance patient safety and improve the patient’s post-discharge medication management.  This was achieved by improving patients’ and caregivers’ knowledge and understanding of the safe use of prescribed medications during the patients’ hospital stay; improving in-home medication monitoring and compliance through home care services for patients meeting specified criteria; and preventing adverse drug events and hospital readmissions due to problems arising from medication usage in the home.

Rapid identification of patients at risk for sepsis and providing timely evidence-based interventions was the focus of the initiative Reducing Sepsis Mortality Through Early Identification of Systemic Inflammatory Response Syndrome and Implementation of “Change Bundles”.  Among the action steps taken to achieve the objectives was determining baseline sepsis mortality rates; conducting individual patient record reviews to identify those with SIRS and current resuscitative treatment; developing screening materials for SIRS for all patients at the time of triage in the emergency department (ED); and creating ED order sets for SIRS and sepsis.

In addition to this honor, South Nassau is a recipient of other prestigious awards this year for quality, performance and patient safety including:

ü            American Heart Association/American College of Cardiology Foundation’s NCDR ACTION Registry– Association Get With The Guidelines®  2011 Gold Performance Achievement Award for coronary artery disease – one of only 167 hospitals nationwide to do so and the fourth consecutive year South Nassau has received the award;

ü            American Heart Association/American Stroke Association Get With The Guidelines® 2011 Stroke Silver Plus Quality Achievement Award;

ü            HomeCare Elite™ top home health care provider (for 5 consecutive years).

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South Nassau Communities Hospital is one of the region’s largest hospitals, with 435 beds, more than 900 physicians and 2,900 employees. Located in Oceanside, NY, the hospital is an acute-care, not-for-profit teaching hospital that provides state-of-the-art care in cardiac, oncologic, orthopedic, bariatric, pain management, mental health and emergency services. In addition to its extensive outpatient specialty centers, South Nassau provides emergency and elective angioplasty and is the only hospital on Long Island with the Novalis Tx™ and Gamma Knife® Perfexion radiosurgery technologies. South Nassau is a designated Stroke Center by the New York State Department of Health and Comprehensive Community Cancer Center by the American College of Surgeons and is recognized as a Bariatric Surgery Center of Excellence by the American Society for Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery. For more information, visit www.southnassau.org.