What's New | August 31, 2011

Palliative Care

Palliative care relieves suffering and improves quality of life for patients with serious conditions and their family caregivers. It involves symptom and pain management, shared decisionmaking, practical and psychosocial support, and coordination across care settings. Palliative care services are typically provided by multidisciplinary teams that consult with patients and family members to address their complex needs.

The featured Innovations describe three programs that deliver palliative care in different settings.

The featured QualityTools provide health care professionals with resources and tools to support the development and quality improvement of palliative care programs.

Featured Innovations:

• Hospital-Based Palliative Care Program Adds Comprehensive Outpatient Services, Leading to Better Access and High Patient and Provider Satisfaction

• Palliative Care Program Honors Parent Wishes and Provides Support, Generating Positive Feedback From Families Facing Loss of Baby

• Skilled Nursing Facility Uses Standardized Assessments, Palliative Care Consults, and Root-Cause Analysis to Reduce Readmissions and Improve Staff Morale

Featured QualityTools:

• Hospice PEACE Project
Developed by The Carolinas Center for Medical Excellence

• POLST (Physician Orders for Life-Sustaining Treatment)
Developed by Coalition for Compassionate Care of California

• Tools for Palliative Care Programs
Developed by Center to Advance Palliative Care

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Also in This Issue:

Innovations >

• Community-Based Effort to Promote Better Diet and Regular Exercise in Students Improves Fitness, Modestly Reduces Obesity

• Comprehensive Initiative to Create a Culture of Safety Significantly Reduces Harm Caused by Medical Errors, Mortality, Length of Stay, and Hospital-Acquired Pneumonia and Infections

• Emergency Department-Based Phlebotomists Expedite Blood Sample Collection and Turnaround Time, Reduce Specimen Contamination and Cost, and Increase Patient Satisfaction

• Hospital-Based Program Protects Newborns by Providing Pertussis Vaccinations to Medically Underserved Hispanic Mothers and Caregivers

• Patient- and Family-Centered Care Initiative is Associated With High Patient Satisfaction and Positive Outcomes For Total Joint Replacement Patients

• Pediatrician Training and In-Office Support Significantly Reduce Instances of Child Maltreatment

QualityTools >

• Clinical Team Training
Developed by VA National Center for Patient Safety

• MOVE!^® Weight Management Program
Developed by Veterans Health Administration National Center for Health Promotion & Disease Prevention (NCP)

• On-Time Quality Improvement Manual for Long-Term Care Facilities
Developed by Health Management Strategies, Inc.; International Severity Information Systems, Inc.

• Workflow Assessment for Health IT Toolkit
Developed by Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality