Reducing the Number of Readmission of Patients - Paper Example

The purpose of this initiative is to reduce the number of readmission of patients within thirty days of acquiring treatment from the hospital. Currently, the rate of readmission is higher than it should be with some causal factors attributable to factors that can be prevented. As such, the reduction aims at the factors within the control of the hospital. Apparently, the reduction is not only aimed at readmission to the same hospital but even to another within the neighborhood. If this problem is not addressed, the life of the patients is put at risk of even death during the worst case scenarios and for the hospital, readmission associated with negligent ruins the reputation of the hospital. In the long term, fewer patients are likely to seek medical care, and thats why this problem needs to be tackled within the shortest time in the best ways possible.

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Data collection tools

Various strategies were employed to collect data that will later be analyzed to form the basis of the outcomes related to hospital readmissions reduction. We have followed all necessary procedures and adhered to the legal requirements of confidentiality as we collect data from the patients. As such we will implement the needs assessment to find the gap from the perspective of the key stakeholders as it relates to readmission. The needs assessment incorporated the different types of care among patients, especially with chronic illnesses. The sample would include the patients with Medicaid and Medicare as they have no limitation on the frequency of seeking medical attention. Also, root cause analysis investigation proved a vital tool in data collection at it provided crucial information about the major causes of high readmission rate. The majority of the readmitted patients are over seventy years of age suffering from heart failure among other chronic illnesses with a greater percentage constituting of women.

Quality Milestones for progress

To attain the goal of reducing readmission, it is imperative to have quality milestones that will mark progress in the right direction. First, there will be a need to have a robust training and information center for the patients who can be educated on why they are admitted, the medication they will be taken and the reason why certain drug will have to be taken in a given manner. Such awareness will ensure that the patients follow the prescription not just routinely but in an informed manner which would reduce readmissions. Secondly, there is a need for accurate diagnosis of individual patients to determine the best care for them based on their health conditions. To some patients, this will include follow-ups at home twenty-four hours after discharge and seek other ambulatory services to assist in coping as noted by Avram, Petruccelli, Winemaker and Beer, (2014). Regular follow-ups will also include phone calls a few days after discharge to identify problems early enough and address them at home with no need for readmission. Finally, there is a need for accurate diagnosis of all patients which would be holistic in nature to avoid partial diagnosis resulting to readmission.

The role of IT

IT department will play a central role as it will keep the information of various clients in the database which will be updated regularly. For instance, the nurse will feed the information of patient X after doing a home visit after discharge. Further, the IT will assist is smooth communication between all key players in health care provision and ensuring confidentiality of patient information through access to authorized people only.

Internal and external benchmarks

The internal benchmark that would be used in the reduction of hospital readmission will be ensuring that the rate of readmissions is reduced up to 20%. This percentage will be for unanticipated events or occurrences that would be unpreventable in eth hospital. Otherwise, all the causal factors that can be eliminated will be addressed. Additionally, the external benchmarks will involve striving to attain the level of readmission of the industry competitors in health care. Such a standard will be achieved by using the best practices throughout the health care facility to ensure the health of the patients is prioritized and given the seriousness it deserves. The attainment of that goal will require the top management to be willing to commit extra resources to the training of the staff on the current practices that are aimed at the reduction of readmission. Hospitals with low readmission rates have invested in the human resources to provide them with the capacity to make a proper diagnosis and offer the best care possible as noted by Ryan, Krinsky, Maurer and Hollingsworth, (2017).

Timeframe

With the full support of the top management, the rate of readmission will be reduced within a span of one year. After that evaluation of the processes, performance, and structure evaluation criteria to find out whether the objective has been attained and the level of deviance. Thus, after reaching the results, it will be possible to use other strategies to achieve the goals after learning several things from the outcome.

Key players

The key players in attaining the goal are the top management as they provide necessary support, give direction and allow the changes to occur. The patients are also important as they play a significant role in providing information during needs assessment and identification of gaps in care provision. The payers also are critical in this objective as they provide necessary resources for the hospital to operate. Apparently, the nurses, pharmacists and laboratory technicians take a pivotal role in the implementation and evaluation of plan such that without them nothing much would occur. Finally, the government regulations and laws have a bearing on the reduction of readmission rate through various policies that govern health care.

References

Avram, V., Petruccelli, D., Winemaker, M., & de Beer, J. (2014). Total joint arthroplasty readmission rates and reasons for 30-day hospital readmission. The Journal of arthroplasty, 29(3), 465-468.

Ryan, A. M., Krinsky, S., Adler-Milstein, J., Damberg, C. L., Maurer, K. A., & Hollingsworth, J. M. (2017). Association Between Hospitals Engagement in Value-Based Reforms and Readmission Reduction in the Hospital Readmission Reduction Program. JAMA Internal Medicine.