Parkview Medical Center
has earned the Joint Commission's
Gold Seal of Approval.
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Parkview Continues Participation in Statewide Campaign to Improve Patient Safety
(Pueblo, CO March 12, 2008) –Parkview Medical Center is one of 45 Colorado hospitals participating in a statewide effort to increase patient safety and protect patients from harm.
The Colorado 5 Million Lives Campaign is an initiative to help Colorado hospitals enhance quality measures, improve patient safety and reduce medical injuries. The effort is based on the Institute for Healthcare Improvement’s (IHI) national 5 Million Lives campaign, an initiative to prevent five million instances of patient harm over two years through the implementation of twelve interventions.
These interventions include rapid response at the first sign of patient decline, making certain that patients receive the right medications at every transfer point in care, adherence to best practices known to prevent heart attacks and ventilator-associated pneumonia, reduction of infections and drug-resistant staph, and incorporating hospital leadership into patient safety efforts.
In addition to what is recommended by the 5 Million Lives Campaign, Parkview has been taking steps to enhance patient safety. Significant investments have been made to prevent medical errors from happening at the facility. One of the most significant investments was acquiring IntelliDOT™’s CAREt™ system for medication administration. This revolutionary handheld system allows nurses to work with confidence, knowing that they are providing the highest levels of safety every time they administer medications to their patients. Parkview was one of the first in the nation to implement this state-of –the-art technology and it has nearly eliminated medication errors at the medical center. Parkview also implemented several measures including a pediatric rapid response team made up of experts from several different disciplines throughout the hospital.
In Colorado, the 5 Million Lives Campaign is being supported by The Colorado Trust, a grantmaking foundation dedicated to improving the health and well-being of Coloradans. Parkview received a $50,000 from The Colorado Trust to implement the interventions.
The 5 Million Lives Campaign follows upon the success of the 100,000 Lives Campaign, a previous effort of The Colorado Trust and IHI to reduce mortality in hospitals. That effort resulted in saving approximately 122,000 lives nationwide over 18 months.
“Colorado hospitals are committed to providing quality care in a safe manner,” said Steven Summer, President and CEO of the Colorado Hospital Association. “With the large majority of our hospitals participating in the campaign, it’s clear that Colorado hospitals are eager to enhance safety for the benefit of all patients.”
“This is the right thing for patients and for our community,” said Linda DuVall, RN, 5 Million Lives Coordinator for Parkview. “By ensuring consistent implementation of proven patient safety practices, hospitals will see immediate improvements in patient care, while creating system-wide procedures that last over time.”
The Colorado effort is supported by the involvement of leading healthcare organizations including the Colorado Foundation for Medical Care, the Colorado Hospital Association, the Colorado Rural Health Center, and the Center for Nursing Excellence.
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