ABSTRACT
This urban community clinic had poor asthma outcomes compared to the state of Minnesota. The standard of care supports an annual Asthma Action Plan (AAP). However, the majority of patients at this clinic had not received one. This quality improvement project aimed to improve asthma control, measured by an asthma control test of at least 20, through AAP implementation supported by all team members. The clinic's interdisciplinary champion group implemented workflow changes via practice facilitation and Plan-Do-Study-Act cycles. Asthma control rates increased from 23% to 58% in adults and 45% to 63% in children over one year, a statistically significant change.
Subject(s)
Asthma/therapy , Patient Care Planning , Quality Improvement , Adolescent , Adult , Asthma/prevention & control , Child , Child, Preschool , Community Health Centers/organization & administration , Humans , Middle Aged , Midwestern United States , Patient Care Planning/organization & administration , Patient Care Team/organization & administration , Quality Improvement/organization & administration , Quality of Health Care/organization & administration , Treatment Outcome , Young AdultABSTRACT
Antibiotic resistance is one of the top infectious disease threats facing the world today. The escalating resistance to antibiotics has been named by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention as one of the top 5 threats to health in the United States and has led to the development of the National Action Plan for Combating Antibiotic-Resistant Bacteria. The plan, released by the White House in March 2015, calls for the establishment of antibiotic stewardship programs in all acute care hospitals by 2020. For antibiotic stewardship programs to achieve optimal success they must include nursing's perspectives and the active participation of nurses and the nursing profession. Although clearly any successful efforts to address this complex problem must be comprehensive, sustained, and involve all sectors of the health care community and public, the aim of this article is to convey the immediate need for nurses and the nursing profession to actively engage in initiatives, strategies, and solutions to combat antibiotic resistance, and to recommend what stakeholders within the nursing profession might contribute to antibiotic stewardship.
Subject(s)
Anti-Bacterial Agents/therapeutic use , Bacterial Infections/drug therapy , Bacterial Infections/microbiology , Drug Resistance, Bacterial , Drug Utilization/standards , Nursing Care/methods , Humans , United StatesABSTRACT
Emergencies that challenge the infrastructure of the current health care system require a shift in the standard of usual practice. Pregnant women and their newborns are intimately linked special populations that require continued care despite the community circumstances. Pre-event planning with community partners can generate a safer alternative for providing care during a public health emergency. Lessons learned from international and United States public health emergencies have resulted in a better understanding of the essentials of care and the development of resources to guide planning for these populations.
Subject(s)
Disaster Planning/organization & administration , Maternal Health Services/organization & administration , Perinatal Care/organization & administration , Vulnerable Populations , Aged , Continuity of Patient Care/organization & administration , Disasters , Emergencies , Emergency Medical Services/organization & administration , Female , Health Planning Guidelines , Health Services Needs and Demand , Humans , Information Systems/organization & administration , Mass Casualty Incidents , Patient Transfer , Pregnancy , Public Health Practice , United States , Vulnerable Populations/statistics & numerical dataABSTRACT
The Association for Professionals in Infection Control and Epidemiology (APIC) is a non-profit, international organization governed and directed by a board of directors, consisting of four officers and 10 directors. APIC has more than 110 regional Chapters in the United States and more than 10,000 members worldwide. As an authority in infection control, APIC endorses the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices' (ACIP) recommendations published by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Reports
