Bisognano M, Boutwell A. Improving transitions to reduce readmissions. Frontiers of Health Services Management. Spring 2009;25(3):3-10.

In the hospital setting, poor coordination of care often results in hospital readmissions, many of which are avoidable. This article describes processes that hospitals can implement immediately to dramatically improve care transitions and reduce rehospitalization rates. Readmission rates are a focus of interest for payers and policy makers seeking to promote efficiency and quality, and for hospital executives who want their organizations to excel on this performance metric.

Jencks SF, Williams MV, Coleman EA. Rehospitalizations among patients in the Medicare fee-for-service program. New England Journal of Medicine. 2009 Apr 2;360(14):1418-1428.

This study finds that almost one-fifth of Medicare beneficiaries who are discharged from a hospital are readmitted within 30 days. The estimated cost to Medicare for these unplanned rehospitalizations in 2004 was $17.4 billion. The authors recommend implementation of certain interventions at the time of discharge, reliable and prompt follow-up care by primary care physicians, and aggressive management of chronic illnesses to reduce avoidable rehospitalizations.

TCAB improvements double nurse time at the bedside: An interview with IHI's Pat Rutherford. HFMA The Business of Caring newsletter; Jul/Aug 2008:13.

A key goal of the Transforming Care at the Bedside (TCAB) initiative is to increase the amount of time nurses spend with patients. Now in its fourth year, Pat Rutherford, vice president at the Institute for Healthcare Improvement (IHI), describes some of the results. Shared with permission of The Business of Caring newsletter.

Wood DA. Nevada RNs prevent pressure ulcers. Nurse.com; June 16, 2008.

Clinical educators at one hospital in Nevada have begun to work with nurses to improve pressure ulcer care. These nurses are learning more about how to identify skin conditions early, stage wounds, assess risk for skin breakdown, and intervene to prevent pressure ulcers from developing.

Advancing the Practice of Patient- and Family-Centered Care How to Get Started. Bethesda, Maryland: Institute for Family-Centered Care; 2008.

Bringing the perspectives of patients and families directly into the planning, delivery, and evaluation of health care — thereby improving its quality and safety — is what patient- and family-centered care is all about. Many hospitals, however, question how to link it with their overall mission and how to get started. This document provides answers to some of these commonly asked questions; outlines steps for getting started; provides assessment tools; and lists select resources.

Joseph A, Ulrich R. Sound Control for Improved Outcomes in Healthcare Settings. Concord, Calfornia: The Center for Health Design; January 2007.

This report examines how different aspects of sound — noise, speech privacy, speech intelligibility, and music — impact patient and staff outcomes in health care settings and the specific environmental design strategies that can be used to improve the acoustical environment of health care settings.

Full text available. Click view report below.

Hatcher B, Bleich MR, Connolly C, Davis K, O'Neill Hewlett P, Stokley Hill K. Wisdom at Work: The Importance of the Older and Experienced Nurse in the Workplace. Princeton, New Jersey: The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation; June 2006.

This report, supported by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, notes that retaining older nurses is one important strategy for addressing the national nursing shortage. The report suggests implementing such strategies as flexible work hours, increased benefits, newly created professional roles, and an atmosphere of respect for nurses are central considerations for hospitals seeking to recruit and retain older nurses.

Full text available. Click view report below.

Landro L. The informed patient: Hospitals combat error at the "hand-off." The Wall Street Journal. June 28, 2006.

John Whittington, patient safety officer at OSF St. Joseph Medical Center, says the SBAR "quick briefing" model can help overcome differing communication styles, such as nurses who give long, descriptive reports and doctors who say, "just give me the headlines," and don't want a nurse's opinion. OSF started training staffers to use the SBAR communication model in 2004, offering pocket cards and laminated "cheat sheets" posted at each phone.

Porche Jr. RA (editor)
Chicago, Illinois: Joint Commission Resources; 2006

This book first lays a foundation by exploring the roots of lean thinking and its migration into US business. The book addresses how lean thinking is being applied to health care, including case examples in reducing waste, challenges leaders face in applying lean to their organization, and how lean principles can be used to meet Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations standards.

Tucker Al, Spear SJ. Operational failures and interruptions in hospital nursing. Health Services Research [serial online]. 2006.

This article describes a study in which the authors tried to describe the work environment of hospital nurses with particular focus on the performance of work systems supplying information, materials, and equipment for patient care.