SSFHS among area hospital groups uniting to boost patient safety

Competition takes back seat to concern

Northwest Indiana hospital leaders are putting competition aside in a uniform effort to better assure patient safety and services.

Representatives, among them officials of Sisters of St. Francis Health Services Inc. Northern Indiana Region and Community Healthcare System, met in May, and again on Friday (June 26), to lay the foundation for the Northwest Indiana Patient Safety Coalition. The group, in essence, is modeled after the Indianapolis Coalition for Patient Safety that formed in 2003. Other groups since have formed in the Fort Wayne and Michiana regions.

The coalitions, which have the support of the Indiana Hospital Association, work to better ensure patient safety by adopting standardized practices, among other measures. The most recent example, of which the IHA seeks adoption by all hospitals in the state by December, is using the same colors on safety wristbands to denote patients’ conditions and status.

“The idea is to put aside our competitive juices in the name of quality patient care – to not compete when it comes to safety issues,” said Tom Gryzbek, president of Saint Margaret Mercy Hospitals in Hammond and Dyer and head of the IHA’s Northwestern District. District members previously had agreed on a smoking ban on their campuses.

Now the idea is to further expand the cooperation, thus the safety coalition plan, which, Gryzbek said, has been welcomed.

“All of the facilities’ presidents have agreed to do their best for patients -- to find solutions. We are working to create a structure and to identify potential projects,” Gryzbek added.
Each participating hospital has been asked to designate a team of safety leaders to attend coalition meetings, including the chief nurse executive, chief medial officer and leaders of patient safety and quality committees.

Betsy Lee, director of the Indiana Patient Safety Center, which was formed in 2006 as a partnership with the IHA, Indiana State Medical Association and a number of other agencies, is helping to coordinate the coalition effort.

“Patient safety has to happen at the front lines of care. The idea is to create coalitions where those doing the jobs can have a dialog and improve the possibility of improving care in the communities. They can say, ‘this is an issue for us.’ It makes it a clinical discussion, not just a hypothetical one.”

She added standardization of practices also can benefit doctors who work at more than one area hospital. “It’s appealing to get involved in a communitywide initiative.”
Lee said the original coalition formed in Indianapolis was the brainchild of two medical directors, Dr. Donald Kerner, the founding officer, and Dr. Glenn Bingle.

“They took the idea and ran with it,” Lee added.

Officiating at Friday’s Northwest Indiana coalition meeting, which took place at Purdue University Calumet in Hammond, were Dr. David Milen, manager of safety and security for Saint Margaret Mercy, and Peggy Gerard, dean of the Purdue-Calumet School of Nursing, who, along with some of her students, worked in conjunction with Saint Anthony Medical Center earlier this year on a standardized wristband project presentation, portions of which have been incorporated in the state’s effort. She also pledged her 50 students’ support to assist in coalition efforts.
Coalition members decided to mold their program mostly after the Indianapolis model, and to include portions of a Palm Beach County, Fla., plan. They also decided to meet monthly and discussed nominations for officer positions, with further action to be taken at a subsequent meeting.

Also discussed were potential projects the coalition could address in its efforts to further standardize patient safety projects.
Among them were:
* Standardizing surgical instruments and sponge-count policies.
* Precautions to guard against hospital-acquired infections.
* A patient education campaign focused on medication lists.
* Standardizing emergency codes.
* Glycemic controls.
* Setting guidelines for care while patients are in emergency rooms awaiting bed placement.

Toward the end of the meeting, Gerard told the attendees, “You are a great group and have done a wonderful job. I am excited to see the program getting off the ground.”

University of St. Francis, SAMC partnership sees growth

Nursing program gets more space, needs instructors

CROWN POINT - The University of Saint Francis-Crown Point nursing education program is growing in more ways than one and is looking for help.

Beginning Aug. 24, the Saint Anthony Medical Center location of the Fort Wayne- based university will add a two-year Associate of Science in Nursing degree program to six other course offerings. The hospital-university partnership began in 2006 with 12 students, eight of whom were in the first graduating class in 2008.

Twenty-four students are enrolled in the new course. A total of 86 students will participate in nursing degree programs and in General Education classes leading to those programs, in the upcoming semester.

Program growth also is necessitating a move to larger, temporary quarters and is generating a call for more instructors.

USF-Crown Point, which had been located in the Burrell Cancer Institute on the Saint Anthony campus, is moving to space inside the hospital that is more than twice the size of the current location and will be ready in time for the August session, according to Janet Weirick, site director.
Plans call for construction of a permanent USF-Crown Point School of Nursing to be built on 10 acres south of Franciscan Point, Saint Anthony’s outpatient treatment complex at 12800 Mississippi Parkway (just east of Interstate 65 along U.S. 231). That facility is expected to open in three to five years, when projected enrollment is approximately 500 students.

Growth also presents the need for more faculty members, a factor cited as a cause of a nationwide nursing shortage. Adjunct instructors, preferably practicing nurses who have master’s or bachelor’s degrees working toward master’s, are sought. USF-Crown Point currently has three full-time and five adjunct instructors.
Its other degree offerings include:
* Licensed Practical Nurse to Associate of Science in Nursing.
* Registered Nurse to Master of Science (Nursing Transition Sequence).
* Master of Science in Healthcare Administration.
* Master of Science in Nursing (Family Nurse Practitioner).
* Master of Science in Nursing (Community Health and Education.
* Registered Nurse to Bachelor of Science in Nursing.

For more information on USF-Crown Point programs or on becoming an instructor, call Margaret Stoffregen-DeYoung, nursing program director, at (219) 681-6800.

Saint Anthony salutes auxiliary volunteers

Annual program pays tribute to those who go above and beyond

CROWN POINT - Saint Anthony Medical Center paid tribute to its approximately 170 auxiliary volunteers recently, with pins, roses, food, entertainment and prizes at an annual Appreciation and Awards Luncheon.

Saint Anthony President David Ruskowski called it an honor to celebrate the occasion as the hospital notes its 35th anniversary this year. He expressed gratitude to the volunteers, whose program has been in operation since the hospital opened.
“On behalf of the Sisters of St. Francis, administration and staff at Saint Anthony, thank you for your service, dedication and compassion,” Ruskowski said.

Honorary awards for volunteers who have worked 10 or more consecutive years were presented to Karen Marie Allen, Arlene Hatton, Betty Janiga, Betty Marasco, Jack Milaskey, Barbara Rolla and Patricia Wedding.

The efforts of 49 volunteers, who had 100 to 2,000 service hours, also were recognized. They include:
* 100 hours: Carolyn Anzur, Richard Binder, Jacqueline Buck, Nancy Bult, Patty Gescheidler, Esther Goldman, Carly Golwitzer, Margaret Hanaway, Zohreh Joorabchi, Pauline Lagestee, Carolyn Meihbresse, Virginia Mitchell, Joseph Perrotta, Carol Saager, Melissa Steuer, Janise Taylor, Dorothy Welch and Sandy Lee Wentz.
* 500: Nancy Bland, Harold Chubbs, Loretta Clark, Cora Domanski, Donna Dovichi, Charles Elliott, Leanne Hoyle, Robert Hoyle, Catherine Martin, Helen Mooney, James Morgan and Jeanette Wright.
* 1,000: Janet Ayers, Betty Bellamy, Livia Centofanti, Dale Christensen, Mary Kay Durkin, Gertrude Havens, Zigmund Ondo, Gerry Regnerus and Dale Smith.
* 1,500: Ronald Gunnum, Eleanor Hargis, Suzanne Higgins, Maryrose Lynch and Norma Vittorini.
* 2,000: Mary Bixenman, Fred Bunger, Arlene Hatton, Bill Jenkins and Anna Mae Kerr.
Healthcare Auxilian awards, established by the American Hospital Association to honor the “time, skill and compassion” of those who have 2,500 or more hours of service, were presented to 41 volunteers, including:
* 2,500 hours: Jean Eberle, Jerry Hofferth and Dorothy Mileusinch.
* 3,000: Karen Marie Allen, Mary Ann Graden, Mardi Lee Kalember, John Kane and Ronald Kerbs.
* 3,500: Joanne Hofferth, Elizabeth Louis and Doris Paluszak.
* 4,500: Ann Bakondi, Janet Gray and Valerie Lenzo.
* 5,000: Marilyn Karlson and Jean Lewandowski.
* 5,500: JoAnn Carberry, Jerrie Damm and Bethel Griffin.
* 6,000: Cliff Esboldt, Pat Fisher, Bud Jacobs, Eugenia Klavas and Florence Kozicki.
* 6,500: Sister Joella Bielinski, Lou Chelich, Mary Reynolds, Roselyn Trimble and Alma White.
* 7,500: Sister Frances Szczur.
* 8,000: Sharon McColley.
* 8,500: Anna Claussen, Lida Laszlo and Howard Trimble.
* 9,000: Dorothy Teer.
* 10,500: Helen McEntire.
* 11,500: Ruth Gale and Jeanne Gerlach.
* 12,500: Doris Curless and Jack Milaskey.
* 13,000: Edith Griswold.
* 19,500: Betty Kerbs.
* 21,000: Betty Jane Wagner.
* 23,000: Frank Dudash.
* 25,000: Vivian Kelby.
* 30,000: Leona Luke.

Volunteers, through a variety of activities and fund-raisers through the years, have contributed about $2 million to benefit hospital programs and initiatives.

For more information, or to join the auxiliary, call (219) 757-6347.

National evaluation lauds Saint Anthony anti-cancer efforts

American College of Surgeons study cites 5 areas of excellence

CROWN POINT Saint Anthony Medical Center recently received another medal in connection with its war on cancer.

The Commission on Cancer of the American College of Surgeons granted the hospital’s cancer program a Three-Year Approval with Commendation in five areas, following a voluntary evaluation. Saint Anthony has been accredited by the college for more than 20 years.

A letter from the commission, notifying the hospital of the results, said, in part, “Commission on Cancer approval recognizes your facility’s commitment to your community and to cancer patients seen at your facility.

“This is demonstrated by the organization of the cancer services, scope of high-quality care provided … and through a program of studies of quality and implemented changes that improve access to care and outcomes.”

Among the commended areas were quality of data, cancer-related improvements and community outreach activities

Becky Grove, manager of the Burrell Cancer Institute-Breast Care Center on the hospital campus, said the commendations show that patients can get needed treatment close to home.

“I am very pleased that the program recognizes our quality and commitment to cancer care in the community. It’s valuable that an outside, objective organization has evaluated us.”

According to the college, patients treated at a hospital that has received its accreditation have access to:

• Comprehensive care, including a range of state-of-the-art services and equipment.
• A multispecialty, team approach to coordinate the best treatment options.
• Information about ongoing clinical trials and new treatment options.
• Access to cancer-related information, education and support.
• A cancer registry that collects data on types and stages of cancers and treatment results and offers lifelong patient follow-up.
• Ongoing monitoring and improvement of care.
• Quality care close to home.
  

Dr. Raymond Drasga, medical director of the Burrell Cancer Institute, said the accreditation and commendations are a refection of “a stable, viable and dedicated staff.”

“We have an excellent program that is a credit to everyone involved,” he added.

There are more than 1,400 commission-approved cancer programs in the nation and Puerto Rico, which represent nearly 25 percent of the hospitals in those localities. Those hospitals diagnose and/or treat 80 percent of newly diagnosed cancer patients annually, according to the commission.

Established in 1922 by the American College of Surgeons, the commission includes a consortium of 42 professional organizations nationwide dedicated to improving survival rates and quality of life for patients.

Saint Anthony Medical Center is located at 1201 S. Main St. For more information, call (219) 757-6285. A cancer hotline is available at (219) 757-6394.

BREAKOUT
Saint Anthony Medical Center also received honors for 2008 from the American Cancer Society that included Five Star Investor and Five Star Community Investor awards

The community investor award is given hospitals that are aiding the cancer fight in at least five ways, through the society’s Workplace Solutions program.

Saint Anthony was honored for its efforts in:

• Providing breast and cervical cancer programs.
• Having an American Cancer Society staff member on the hospital’s Cancer Committee.
• Linking to the cancer society’s national Web site, www.cancer.org.
• Utilizing the Cancer Society’s Reach to Recovery program for breast cancer patients
• Becoming smoke-free and offering prevention programs such as low-cost smoking cessation and early detection and educational programs.
  

The Five Star Investor honor is awarded worksites that are battling cancer on multiple fronts, through the Workplace Solutions program.
Saint Anthony efforts included:

• Becoming smoke-free and offering employees a low-cost smoking cessation program.
• Participation in community events, such as Daffodil Days, Making Strides Against Breast Cancer Walk, Relay for Life and a Gala.