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May 14, 2008
1. SPEAKING OF RATIOS...HERALD SLAMS BILL The Boston Herald today published a stinging editorial against the union's ratio bill. In "Nurse staffing bill needs swift burial," the editors wrote, "The so-called mandatory staffing bill backed by the Massachusetts Nurses Association is virtually guaranteed to raise costs for hospitals - costs that will be passed on to patients in the form of higher insurance premiums. And despite the blatant fear-mongering of the MNA, which has long been pushing what amounts to a union recruitment drive, the bill would do little to improve care. Instead it would wreak havoc on a health care system that can hardly afford it." Read the entire editorial here.  2. HOSPITAL DAY ON THE HILL: 300 TURN OUT TO OPPOSE RATIO BILL About 300 supporters of hospitals and the men and women who work in them came to the State House this past Monday, May 12, to meet with their legislators and to persuade them to oppose a nursing union's shortsighted mandatory staffing bill - HB4714. The union's bill does not tie nursing care to the individual needs of the patient; rather it sets a static ratio of patients to nurses. It does not factor in contributions of other members of the caregiving team, nor does it take into consideration that the arbitrary mandate would be near impossible to meet in the midst of a national nursing shortage. Also, the ratio bill would add an estimated $250 million to $500 million annually in health care costs to the health care system, thereby guaranteeing the collapse of health care reform. "In every corner of the Commonwealth, residents count on their hospitals for access to a wide range of health and wellness programs," said Lynn Nicholas, FACHE, president & CEO of the Massachusetts Hospital Association. "The connection between health care providers and residents has only grown stronger as a result of our historic reform efforts, resulting in more than 380,000 newly insured residents. Today, we call on our state leaders to continue to work with hospitals to make reform a success - and to take a stand against government-mandated nurse staffing ratios, which threaten to derail reform's successes." Speaking against the ratio bill from the CEO's perspective was MHA Board Chairman and the head of North Shore Medical Center Bob Norton. Trustee Nancy Palmer, chairwoman of the board at the Northeast Hospital Corp., told attendees, "As a trustee, I see myself as a community liaison, as a strong advocate for sound health care finances, and as a guardian of our hospital's commitment to safe, high-quality patient care. Looking at the issue from each of those perspectives, I feel very strongly that the nursing union's staffing bill is not in the best interest of my community, my hospital, or the men and women who work in it." Palmer added, "I do believe in affording our caregivers the flexibility to do their jobs. I do believe in tailoring care to the patient, not to a static number. I believe ratios are prohibitively expensive. And, most importantly, I don't believe there is any way - neither now nor in the future - to credibly specify a specific ideal ratio of patients to nurses. It can't be done." Marita Prater, president of the Massachusetts Organization of Nurse Executives also delivered forceful comments against the ratio bill. The House is expected to debate the issue sometime next week. It's still not too late to call your representative - and Senator - to urge them to oppose HB4714. 3. HOSPITALS PARTICIPATE IN HEALTH FAIR During Hospital Day on the Hill, several hospitals were on hand to offer free health and wellness screening. Health fair highlights included: Berkshire Medical Center's total health risk assessment; Caritas Carney offered tips on proper golf stretching; Dana-Farber Cancer Institute provided skin cancer screenings; MetroWest Medical Center offered osteoporosis screenings; and Signature Healthcare Brockton Hospital conducted cholesterol screenings. Jordan Hospital demonstrated SimMan, the latest technology in nurse training. Simulation training effectively improves patient safety and quality. By developing a variety of situations that can be simulated, SimMan ensures that nurses are prepared for the myriad roles they fill in today's hospitals. The SimMan, ALS Simulator, and now the Sim NewB are being used in nurse training programs for situations requiring advance life support, surgery, and for the first time, the needs of newborns. 4. REP. CASEY GETS NURSING AWARD Winchester Hospital has honored State Representative Paul C. Casey (D-Winchester) with its 2008 Friend of Nursing Award for his continuous demonstration of respect for the role of nurses in patient care. Rep. Casey's nomination letter stated, "He has been a strong advocate not only for the profession of nursing, but for the right of nurses to self govern. During this incredibly long debate on nurse staffing ratios, Rep. Casey has never flinched in his support of and his respect for nurses at the bedside to be the key decision makers regarding the nursing care needs of a patient… Not all strides for the nursing profession or the patients we serve are made directly at the bedside. Some of the most important decisions are, in fact, made at the State House. The nurses of Winchester Hospital could not ask for a better advocate or friend than Rep. Paul Casey." 5. CMS TO RUN ADS ON HOSPITAL QUALITY Here's a Heads Up from the American Hospital Association (AHA), which has learned that next Wednesday, May 21, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) will run ads in newspapers across the country to promote the Hospital Quality Alliance's (HQA) website Hospital Compare (www.HospitalCompare.hhs.gov). The ad will run in 55 media markets, featuring a list of hospitals in each market and the hospitals' performance on two of the Hospital Compare measures - a clinical process measure and a patients' experience of care measure from HCAHPS. CMS has stated that it will contact each of the hospitals listed the day before the ad runs, but did not specify how it would communicate with the hospitals. Given the size and importance of the Massachusetts market, it's fair to assume that such an ad will run in at least the Boston Globe, if not the Globe and Herald. Please share this Heads up with your communications team and familiarize yourself with the two measures: 1) the percentage of patients that received an antibiotic one hour before surgery; and 2) the percentage of patients who always received help when they requested it. (The actual HCAHPS question is: During this hospital stay, after you pressed the call button, how often did you get help as soon as you wanted it?) 6. FALLS SYMPOSIUM TOMORROW IN WORCESTER The statewide falls symposium will be held tomorrow at the DCU Center in Worcester between 9 a.m. registration and 3 p.m. wrap up. This symposium will bring together leaders from around Massachusetts, neighboring New England states, and national organizations working on falls prevention across different settings. Topics covered will include medication management, environmental modification and exercise programs to prevent falls. MHA's Senior Director of Clinical Affairs Pat Noga, R.N. will participate in one panel discussion on statewide efforts to address falls. Pat is very involved in the Patients First initiative which led to the public posting of data from all hospitals on falls and falls with injury. 7. PARTNERS' SITE: IMPRESSIVE POSTING At Patients First we believe in public posting - that's obvious from our first-in-the-nation voluntary posting of staffing data for each unit of every hospital, and for our groundbreaking effort to post data on falls, falls with injury and pressure ulcer prevalence. So we're impressed when Massachusetts hospitals and health systems undertake their own efforts, which is what Partners HealthCare has done with its website entitled "High Performance Medicine: Our Report Card on Quality, Safety, and Efficiency." The site contains report cards for each of Partners' target areas: Information Technology, Patient Safety, Consistent High Quality, Care Coordination for Special Populations, and Efficiency and Cost Control. Scores are available for each Partners hospital. It's an impressive, well-designed site and deserves a close look. 8. NEW BLOG: COMPASSIONATE CARE Julie Rosen, the executive director of the Kenneth B. Schwartz Center, has created a new blog dedicated exclusively to compassionate health care. "Bedside Manner" can be found here. "You'll find lots of blogs about medical conditions, healthcare policy, doctoring and the like, but as far as I know, I'm the only one writing about this very essential element of medicine," Rosen says. Past posts have discussed: caregivers who were unable to honor a dying woman's wish to pursue physician-assisted suicide; a doctor who dramatically changed his beside manner after being told coldly over the phone that he had cancer; and an organization started by the parents of an infant who died, dedicated to educating caregivers about the importance of family-centered care. 9. ISMP ISSUES GUIDELINES ON ADCs The Institute for Safe Medication Practices has issued guidelines for safe use automated drug dispensing cabinets (ADCs). The guidelines address the number and location of ADCs and related resources; ADC security, screen information, storage configuration and inventory control; and procedures in the case of a power loss or malfunction. 10. ANNA JAQUES IN THE SCHOOLS Thanks to a generous grant from the Amesbury Healthcare Charitable Trust, Anna Jaques Hospital was able to create a "Clean Hands Dirty Hands" game for first graders that the hospital created in-house. (A sample question from the game is at the end of this item.) Anna Jaques also created and distributed stuffed "germs" (like small stuffed animals), as well as teaching modules for the school nurses, and a launch assembly that demonstrated, with hand powder and a black light, how germs are passed and not easily washed from your hands unless you practice correct hand washing. The program is now implemented at Cashman Elementary School in Amesbury where 350 children are learning the basics of hand hygiene. So here's a sample question from a game card: "How does flu spread?
If you don't know the answer is "b", well … 11. 78 NEW NURSES FROM BROCKTON Seventy-eight graduates will receive their nursing degrees at Signature Healthcare Brockton Hospital School of Nursing's commencement exercises tonight. The hospital is the only community hospital in Massachusetts with a school of nursing on campus. Since its inception in 1897, the school has graduated more than 2,000 nurses, mainly from southeastern Massachusetts. It provides two programs for nursing students; a traditional day program, and a weekend/evening program offering flexibility. For the past three years, 96% of Brockton Hospital School of Nursing grads have passed their board exams on the first attempt. MHA's President & CEO Lynn Nicholas, FACHE, scheduled to address the graduates tonight, said she is looking forward to the commencement because "The excellent health care we are privileged to experience in Massachusetts starts first and foremost with a well trained, committed and compassionate workforce, which after tonight will be enriched by the graduates from Brockton Hospital's School of Nursing." 12. WINCHESTER AND THE SCHOOLS PARTNER UP Patients First is a commitment to improving patient care, but it's also about making sure people outside the hospital's walls are receiving the care they need. Recently, Winchester Hospital donated two wheelchairs, a digital scale and two stethoscopes to the Winchester Public Schools so that the school nurses had the necessary equipment to care for the students. Winchester Hospital's donation illustrates just one of the many ways that Mass. hospitals show they care about the health of their communities, from providing free health screenings to partnering with local organizations. . 13. TEAM UP WITH CITIZEN SCHOOLS Citizen Schools is an organization that reaches out to urban middle school students with high-quality after school programs. Citizen Schools' apprenticeship program is an opportunity for hospitals to develop the workforce pipeline by sparking young students' interest in healthcare. Through this program, hospital volunteers from different professional fields create hands-on projects for the students that emphasize essential skills for successful careers in a chosen field. The students then present their work to the community, resulting in a cycle of learning that benefits everyone. Click here to learn more about Citizen Schools. 14. NOMINATE YOUR HOSPITAL FOR CIRCLE OF LIFE AWARD The Circle of Life Award recognizes healthcare organization's innovation in the care provided to patients with life-threatening conditions or near the end of life. The 2009 Circle of Life Awards and Citations of Honor will be presented at the American Hospital Association Health Forum Summit, July 23-25, 2009, in San Francisco. To nominate an organization or program, please visit AHA's website or e-mail circleoflife@aha.org by August 8, 2008. |
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