Communication
Discharge - Transitions Home
General
International Initiatives
National Initiatives & Organizations
Patient, Family & Consumer Sites
Patient-Centered Care
Professional Associations
US Government
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Communication
The Harvard School of Public Health's Health Literacy Studies website offers information on research and policy, literature and resources, educational materials, and tools. It is designed for professionals in health and education who are interested in health literacy.
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The Clear Language Group (CLG) is a consortium of health literacy, plain language, and cross-cultural communication specialists that help organizations reach the 90 million American adults with limited-literacy skills and “average” readers who also need clear, plain language communications.
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The National Institute for Literacy provides information on scientific reading research pertaining to children, youth, and adults, as well as information about development and implementation of classroom reading programs. Most of its funds support programs and services designed to improve the quality of literacy programs nationwide.
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Discharge - Transitions Home
An initiative of the American College of Cardiology and the Institute for Healthcare Improvement, Hospital to Home (H2H) is a national improvement initiative that aims to reduce unnecessary readmissions and improve care transitions for cardiovascular patients. The goal is to reduce all-cause readmission rates among patients discharged with heart failure or acute myocardial infarction by 20 percent by December 2012.
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General
Seton Northwest Hospital in Austin, Texas, shares their positive experience in the Transforming Care at the Bedside pilot project.
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The Magnet Recognition Program was developed by the American Nurses Credentialing Center to recognize health care organizations that provide the very best in nursing care and uphold the tradition within nursing of professional nursing practice. The program also provides a vehicle for disseminating successful practices and strategies among nursing systems.
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Lean Enterprise Institute (LEI) is a non-profit training, publishing, and a research center founded in 1997 by James P. Womack, author of the best-selling book Lean Thinking. LEI shares and teaches lean principles, tools, and techniques to minimize waste and maximize value in an organization. This is a great site that describes the fundamentals of lean thinking and provides access to support tools, articles, workbooks, events, and training.
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International Initiatives
The materials on this website are from the United Kingdom Department of Health's 'Discharge from the Hospital' program. These materials are designed to help senior staff and practitioners in acute hospitals work with their partners in local authorities and primary care trusts to improve the discharge care pathway of adults with complex discharge needs.
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National Initiatives & Organizations
The AMA Foundation is the philanthropic arm of the American Medical Association. Its mission is to advance health care through support of programs in medical education, research, and service.
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The aim of the Care Transitions Program (University of Colorado at Denver, Health Care Policy and Research) is to address the negative consequences of fragmented care, including duplication of services, discontinuity, medication errors, patient and family caregiver distress, unnecessary utilization and higher costs of care.
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The mission of the National Patient Safety Foundation (NPSF) is to improve measurably patient safety in the delivery of health care by its efforts to:
Identify and create a core body of knowledge;
Identify pathways to apply the knowledge;
Develop and enhance the culture of receptivity to patient safety;
Raise public awareness and foster communications about patient safety; and
Improve the status of the Foundation and its ability to meet its goals.
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This coalition website provides resources for educating and helping all stakeholders (patients, providers, lawyers, insurers, etc.) understand the value of doctors apologizing for medical errors.
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The National Center for Patient Safety (NCPS) embodies the Department of Veterans Affairs' (VA) uncompromising commitment to reducing and preventing adverse medical events and close calls while enhancing the care given to patients. The NCPS represents a unified and cohesive patient safety program, with active participation by all of the 163 VA facilities supported by dedicated patient safety managers. The program focuses on prevention not punishment, applying human factor analysis, and the safety research of high reliability organizations (e.g., aviation and nuclear power) targeted at identifying and eliminating system vulnerabilities in order to prevent harm to patients.
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Patient, Family & Consumer Sites
The “How’s Your Health” tool allows patients to explore their health care needs and communicate more effectively with their providers. Get a two-part "10-Minute Health Checkup": 1) assess health, habits, knowledge about disease prevention, and satisfaction with health care providers; 2) use the individualized "action form" to share with a doctor to manage your health and keep track of progress. There is also a section to privately share and learn problem-solving strategies with others online.
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Cooper University Hospital's website provides information to parents of patients who are preparing for discharge. Includes checklist of things to ask the doctor and understand before going home.
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This section of the Aurum Network's website offers discharge planning tips and guidelines for patients. The Aurum Network is a large network of independently owned post-acute care providers in Massachusetts.
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A comprehensive, patient-focused website that describes what discharge means for patients and families and the steps and resources involved. Includes a checklist.
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Ask Me 3 is a website for both providers and patients that promotes three simple but essential questions that patients should ask their providers in every health care interaction. The Ask Me 3 program is sponsored by the Partnership for Clear Communications and provides information and practical strategies for both patients and providers to address health literacy issues.
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The Institute for Family-Centered Care, a non-profit organization, provides leadership to advance the understanding and practice of patient- and family-centered care. By promoting collaborative, empowering relationships between providers and consumers, the Institute facilitates patient- and family-centered change in all settings where individuals and families receive care and support. Guidance for creating patient and family advisory councils, supporting family participation on committees and task forces (e.g., patient safety, pain management, quality improvement, and patient and family education), collaborative design planning, and involving patients and families in staff orientation and the education of students and trainees is available from the Institute.
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Patient-Centered Care
The Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality has developed survey tools called CAHPS® surveys (Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems) to enable consumers to identify the best health plans, facilities, and services for their needs. There is also a hospital survey component that addresses patient feedback regarding their hospital stay, including patient experience of environmental conditions (i.e., cleanliness), communication (i.e., explanation of side effects), pain management, and other characteristics.
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The Center to Advance Palliative Care (CAPC) is dedicated to increasing the availability of quality palliative care services in hospitals and other health care settings for people with life-threatening illnesses, their families, and caregivers.
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CaringBridge is a not-for-profit organization providing a free online service connecting patients to friends and families.
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The Center for Health Design (CHD) is a leading nonprofit organization dedicated to research, education, and advocacy in the field of health care facility design. CHD provides technical assistance, supporting health care and design professionals all over the world in their quest to improve the quality of health care through evidence-based building design.
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Planetree is a non-profit organization committed to improving medical care from the patient's perspective. The Planetree Model focuses on the importance of architectural and interior design in improving patient outcomes and satisfaction. Hospital designs based on the Planetree Model include home-like, barrier-free environments that support patient dignity and encourage family participation in care.
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Professional Associations
The Academy of Medical-Surgical Nurses (AMSN) is a national organization dedicated to enhancing the knowledge, skills, and professionalism of medical-surgical nurses in all practice settings through certification, education, nurturing relationships, and the promotion of quality nursing care and wellness.
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Today, the American Association of Critical Care Nurses is the largest specialty nursing organization in the world, representing the interests of more than 400,000 nurses who are charged with the responsibility of caring for the most critically ill patients. The association provides members with the knowledge and resources necessary to provide optimal care to critically ill patients. This website has clinical practice resources, including "practice alerts" and educational tools, that incorporate current research and best practices into daily ICU routines.
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US Government
The 2005 NHQR includes 179 performance measures that can be used to monitor the United State's progress toward improved health care quality for all Americans. The report focuses on four components of quality: effectiveness, patient safety, timeliness, and patient-centeredness. It also presents data on a group of 46 "core" measures representing the most important and scientifically sound measures of quality.
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