HPCI News: The technology exists to do it right, but so many hospitals would rather spend the money on fountains or valet parking
To: Members and selected others
On June 20th the Des Moines
Register published an article entitled "Ex-staffer says
hospital hid risks to 2 patients". It reported on a nurse at
Mercy Hospital in Council Bluffs who resigned his post last
year after his supervisor refused to tell patients that
surgical instruments used on them were dirty and hadn't been
properly sterilized. The nurse was quoted as saying: "The
technology exists to do it right, but so many hospitals
would rather spend the money on fountains or valet parking."
If you ask the patients at Mercy Hospital in Council
Bluffs whether they would rather the hospital spend the
money on making things safer for patients or for fountains
or valet parking what would they say? In reality patients
don't have a choice since they don't know about the
hospital's patient safety record. More transparency of
hospitals, and in the health care sector in general, will
help improve quality and drive out cost. Some states, such
as Minnesota, California and the State of Washington, are
making good progess doing this. Iowa should join in and
become a leader.
In California, the
Pacific Business Group on Health has adopted the following
five year strategic vision: "A healthcare marketplace in
which information is transparent, reliable and easily
accessible by the public, rewards most effective providers,
while also motivating purchasers and consumers to select
high quality and cost-effective providers." Accelerate
transparency projects include the California Healthcare
Performance Information System, Online Physician Rating and
The Patient Assessment Survey.
The State of
Washington releases "The Community Checkup", an annual
report on health care quality and value at medical groups
and hospitals in the state. Hospital specific comparative
scores are for patient safety, death rates, never events,
re-admission rates, early elective delivery rates compared
to goal rate and others. Medical groups and clinic
comparative scores include appropriate use of care
(avoidance of antibiotics, X-rays, MRI and CT scans),
patient experience and others.
The State of
Minnesota sponsors a website "Minnesota Health
Information: A Guide to Health Care Quality and Cost in
Minnesota". It provides one place where Minnesotans can link
to many resources of information on health care quality and
cost. Also, MN Community Measurement, a non-profit community
organization, is a public source of usable and reliable
information about health care quality to consumers,
providers and purchasers.
The Des Moines Register
article can be seen by clicking on the following link:
http://dmreg.co/SYHbxm.
Paul M. Pietzsch, MPH
HPCI - IHBA Office
4430 Ashley Park Drive
West Des Moines, Iowa 50265
(515) 778-6300