Transcript PPT
Unit-Based Teams Are Getting Results
Examples of success:
Affordability, efficiency and service
December 2014
Colorado Couriers Save Jobs and Money
FEATURED TEAM
Colorado Couriers
WHAT THEY DID
The Couriers unit-based team, concerned about
the outsourcing of delivery services, streamlined
operations by:
• Improving its routes and workflows
• Hiring an additional person to reduce reliance
on contractors
• Using new technology to better schedule and
track orders
Visit LMPartnership.org for ideas and tools for your team.
RESULTS
Improved timeliness of deliveries—and
savings of more than $375,000 a year.
Teams Collaborate to Ease Growing Workload
FEATURED TEAM
Molecular and Cytology Lab UBTs, Stapleton
Colorado
WHAT THEY DID
With growing membership in the region, and
increased demands for testing (especially Pap and
HPV screening), the teams:
• Studied other labs’ practices
• Vetted and recommended new equipment
• Streamlined processes and fast-tracked
training
RESULTS
Processing time for HPV samples fell
by half, even as test volume more
than quadrupled.
Average HPV screens per month
Visit LMPartnership.org for ideas and tools for your team.
Team Saves on Outside Medical Costs
FEATURED TEAM
Southwood Specialties Gastrointestinal
Georgia
WHAT THEY DID
To reduce the need for expensive, outside
physicians to administer anesthesia:
• Scheduled doctors to perform anesthesia
cases only four days a week, instead
of five
• Increased the percentage of anesthesia cases
from 70 percent to at least 90 percent on the
days physicians are scheduled
Visit LMPartnership.org for ideas and tools for your team.
RESULTS
$113,000 savings in 10 months
Inpatient Pediatrics Team Reduces Linen Costs
FEATURED TEAM
Inpatient Pediatrics, Moanalua Medical Center
Hawaii
WHAT THEY DID
This UBT reduced linen costs—while ensuring it
had the right number of gowns in the right
sizes— by adjusting par levels, ordering fewer
linens overall but more pediatric-sized gowns.
Team members also designated a secure cabinet
for permanent linen storage. Their goal was to
reduce laundry costs by 5 percent.
Visit LMPartnership.org for ideas and tools for your team.
RESULTS
Average monthly linen cost
Saving the Hassle and Cost of Lost ID Cards
FEATURED TEAM
Membership Administration
Mid-Atlantic States
WHAT THEY DID
To improve service and save money, this UBT
reduced the number of member ID cards being
sent to incorrect addresses—and ultimately
destroyed. Team members:
• Corrected member addresses by conferring
with members, employer groups and KP
departments
• Remailed original cards rather than issuing
duplicates
• Worked with call center colleagues to prevent
replacement cards from again going to an
incorrect address
Visit LMPartnership.org for ideas and tools for your team.
RESULTS
Cards destroyed per quarter and
associated costs
Simple Conversation Improves Follow-Up Care
FEATURED TEAM
Unit Assistants, Redwood City Medical Center
Northern California
WHAT THEY DID
To reduce costly and stressful patient
readmissions, this UBT increased the percentage
of follow-up appointments scheduled to take
place within seven days of a patient’s discharge
from the hospital.
Before a patient is discharged, unit assistants
speak with the patient and family about
follow-up appointments and log the information,
so appointments can be booked at the most
convenient times. This practice spread
throughout the hospital.
Visit LMPartnership.org for ideas and tools for your team.
RESULTS
Percentage of follow-up
appointments that occur
within seven days of discharge
Percentage of follow-up
appointments kept by patients
Floor Cleaning Made Greener, Cheaper
FEATURED TEAM
EVS, Sacramento Medical Center
Northern California
WHAT THEY DID
This UBT purchased new floor-cleaning
equipment that does not use chemicals or
large amounts of water to clean and refinish
hospital and medical office floors. The team’s
goal was to reduce the overall cost of floor
care by reducing by 25 percent the cost of the
chemicals used in the machines.
Visit LMPartnership.org for ideas and tools for your team.
RESULTS
Reduction in annual cleaning
solution costs
Teamwork Gives Babies a Healthy Start
FEATURED TEAM
Health Education, Manteca Medical Center
Northern California
WHAT THEY DID
To increase the number of new moms
breastfeeding their babies, this UBT:
• Provided support involving health educators,
lactation consultants, physicians, medical
assistants and nurses
• Encouraged observance of the “golden hour”
immediately after birth, when a newborn is
placed skin to skin on the mother’s chest to
promote bonding and breastfeeding
• Made sure mothers-to-be were asked about
breastfeeding at the regular 28-week visit.
Visit LMPartnership.org for ideas and tools for your team.
RESULTS
Percentage of mothers exclusively
breastfeeding their newborns
Rates jumped 22 points in less than one year
Change in Tubing Saves $25,000
FEATURED TEAM
Oncology, Interstate Medical Office
Northwest
WHAT THEY DID
Team members assessed their use of supplies
and switched from expensive specialized tubing
to deliver certain IV medications to standardized
tubing, when equally safe and effective.
RESULTS
Reduced the cost of IV tubing by 85 percent,
saving about $25,000 a year.
Visit LMPartnership.org for ideas and tools for your team.
Spreading Ways to Transform Care
FEATURED TEAM
Regional Infusion Center
Northwest
WHAT THEY DID
Team members heard about a new, faster
method for delivering Remicade, an infusion
drug used to treat Crohn’s and other
diseases. They gathered information from
other regions using the new protocol and
worked to fast-track the approval process in
the Northwest.
Visit LMPartnership.org for ideas and tools for your team.
RESULTS
Infusion times dropped from 3.5 hours to 1.5
hours per patient. Up to 16 hours of patient
chair time was opened up every day.
Speedy Slides Boost Morale, Efficiency
FEATURED TEAM
Histology, Regional Laboratory
Northwest
WHAT THEY DID
To improve turnaround times, reduce rework and
boost morale, the team (which prepares tissue
slides for review by pathologists), began:
• Using a display board to track turnaround
times
• Incorporating turnaround time and quality
assurance discussions in huddles
• Meeting weekly with sponsors and
pathologists to improve communication
Visit LMPartnership.org for ideas and tools for your team.
RESULTS
Percentage of slides distributed to
pathologists by 8 a.m.
Smart Scheduling Reduces Waste
FEATURED TEAM
Oncology Pharmacy, Woodland Hills
Southern California
WHAT THEY DID
To reduce waste of expensive medication, team
members:
• Schedule back-to-back appointments for
patients getting infusions of the same drugs,
to avoid discarding unused medication
• Use smaller vials of two commonly used drugs
Visit LMPartnership.org for ideas and tools for your team.
RESULTS
Average weekly waste of medication was
cut in half, for savings of more than
$114,000 a year
Outreach Reduces Health Disparities
FEATURED TEAM
Internal Medicine, Los Angeles Medical Center
Southern California
WHAT THEY DID
To improve the rate of hypertension control
among African-American members, this UBT
invites members who meet specific criteria to a
specialized clinic. Team members there:
• Take blood pressure readings
• Provide education about hypertension and
prescribe or adjust medications for those who
need it
• Give certificates to those who have their
blood pressure under control
Visit LMPartnership.org for ideas and tools for your team.
RESULTS
The team’s work helped close the care
gap between African-American patients
and those of other races
or ethnicities.
Giving Patients a Voice
FEATURED TEAM
Neonatal Intensive Care Unit,
Downey Medical Center
Southern California
WHAT THEY DID
To better integrate parents into the caregiving
and information sharing for their newborns,
this team:
• Created “quiet time,” when parents listen
and jot down notes while the outgoing
nurse updates the incoming nurse
• Devised a discreet signal if nurses needed
to step away to discuss sensitive
information out of the parents’ earshot
Visit LMPartnership.org for ideas and tools for your team.
RESULTS
Patient satisfaction scores rose
from 74 percent to 88 percent one year
later.
Peer Education Reduces Sharps Injuries
FEATURED TEAM
Inpatient Nursing, San Diego Medical Center
Southern California
WHAT THEY DID
Three frontline nurses stepped up to tackle a
shared concern about needle and sharps injuries.
The nurses:
• Travelled from unit to unit to share best
practices
• Standardized supplies, recommending use of
the same best equipment everywhere
• Contributed their expertise to investigations
of needlestick injuries.
Visit LMPartnership.org for ideas and tools for your team.
RESULTS
76 percent decrease in needlestick
injuries in inpatient nursing units