Focused on HCAHPS, Avera Sacred Heart Hospital Improves Its Scores
By Nicholas Dowd, Senior Consultant (HCAHPs and other Surveys), HealthStream
The commitment to excellence is truly a team effort at Avera Sacred Heart Hospital (ASHH). They have been involved in – and seek out – opportunities to collaborate with facilities from across the nation to share best practices and processes to improve overall quality. For example, they were active participants in the CMS Demonstration Project and have proactively participated in programs such as the QUEST initiative, the IHI 100k Lives Campaign and the 5 Million Lives Campaign. They are also currently participating in the CMS initiative “Partnership for Patients. ASHH sees participating in each of these collaboratives as means to improve evidenced-based care, patient perceptions of care and enhanced patient safety.
Their deep level of commitment to continuously improving quality is a unifying thread that runs throughout the hospital, touching every employee. This team effort starts with transparency of performance data. Performance data at the unit level is posted on the hospital’s intranet enabling all employees to see results. Using the “push” feature of HealthStream’s Insights Online product, leaders can schedule and post results via e-mail to those front-line staff that need that information to manage more effectively. Those data are also an integral part of the work of ASHH Patient Services Council and a variety of performance improvement teams at work on a daily basis..jpg)
The current areas of focus for the hospital include:
- Decreasing overall readmissions
- Evaluating and implementing best practice solutions to reduce hospital harm
- Maximizing use of the electronic medical record
Read the full success story here.