We’ve had to go to the emergency room a couple of times for my daughter over the years and I always think “Are we going to be exposed to a virus worse than the condition we already have?” Honestly, ERs terrify me because of the variety of illnesses contained in one small room, the lack of sanitary precautions most patients take and the amount of people sick people constantly in one room. However, infections are not just a problem in the ER. Due to this risk factor, several hospitals in Ohio have developed a program to protect their patients from bloodstream infections which could help RN to BSN bridge program nurses throughout the country.
A press release was posted by the Ohio Hospital Association describing their new strategy for decreasing bloodstream infections by half. “By working together, 53 Ohio hospitals have drastically reduced central line-associated bloodstream infections (CLABSI) in intensive care units by 48 percent over a 22-month period, saving lives and health care costs.
“Through collaboration with the Ohio Hospital Association, the 53 participating hospitals worked with 80 patient care units in Ohio on the CUSP: Stop BSI as part of a voluntary national effort to eliminate CLABSI using the Comprehensive Unit-Based Safety Program (CUSP). A central line is a catheter that ends in large vessels going into the heart so clinicians can more closely monitor patients and administer medication.”
With this new development, hospitals in Ohio and two other states were able to save more than $4,558,000, they prevented 86 bloodstream infections, saved 17 lives, and saved 688 excess hospital days. This makes me think that Benjamin Franklin was right: “An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.”
Granted, I know these studies are costly and grant money is hard to come by, but these results are quite impressive. The press release stated that their bloodstream infection rate dropped by half. I’m just thinking about what studies could be done in different areas. The financial costs, lives saved, nurses wouldn’t be overextended, and an increase inpatient health and morale could be incredible outcomes.
The purpose of getting an online BSN degree is to help people get and stay well. With these new studies on the horizon, more nurses will be able to do just that!
To read the complete article mentioned in this post, please visit
http://www.ohanet.org/Press-Release/Ohio_Hospitals_Reduce_Bloodstream_Infections_by_Half
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