Presence Saint Joseph Hospital – Elgin has been awarded the Illinois Hospital Association Institute for Innovations in Care and Quality’s 2015 Quality Excellence Achievement Award for a unique collaborative to improve orthopedic outcomes.

Presence Saint Joseph’s is one of only two hospitals in the state to be honored in the Urban Hospital Category. The fifth annual awards were presented during IHA’s Leadership Summit on Sept. 11, 2015.

Presence Saint Joseph’s Interdisciplinary Orthopedic Co-Management Collaborative was formed in 2012 to bring all orthopedic stakeholders together monthly to review patient care from beginning to end. The group developed new care guidelines to get patients home faster and reduce Venous Thromboembolism, the formation of blood clots in the veins.

Getting patients ambulatory quicker after surgery was one key factor in improving outcomes according to Karen Ramos, BSN, RN, ONC, Manager of the Orthopedics Unit at Presence Saint Joseph. The team initiated new protocols, medication changes, and an early mobility program.

“We now get patients out of bed within five hours of surgery and ensure they are up and walking. With early mobility the patient’s muscles and tendons start to get acclimated to change more quickly resulting in better pain control, faster healing and fewer side effects,” said Ramos.

According to Patricia Gawrys, BSN, RN, CRRN, ONC, Clinical Unit Educator, the initiatives were incredibly successful.

“From 2012 to 2014, we reduced our VTE rates by 87 percent and decreased length of stay by 65 percent for total hip patients and 46 percent for total knees,” said Gawrys.

The Collaborative continues to meet monthly to track metrics and seek new improvement projects, including a focus this year on reducing readmission rates.

“The key to our success has been the incredible collaboration among the team. There is no hierarchy. People from all different positions, including physicians, nurses, physical therapists, pharmacy and finance, all respect everyone else’s opinion. There is complete buy-in by all members,” said Connie Noltemeyer, RN, MSN, MJ, CPPS, Regional Quality Lead, Presence Health Fox River Valley.

Nearly 100 applications were submitted by nearly 50 hospitals in four categories. A panel of nationally-recognized quality improvement experts evaluated submissions based on achieving progress in implementing the Institute for Healthcare Improvement’s Triple Aim – enhancing the patient experience; improving population health; and reducing health care costs—and the Institute of Medicine’s six aims for improvement—safe, effective, patient-centered, timely, efficient, and equitable.

“These award-winning projects offer a snapshot of what Illinois hospitals are doing when they think bold to take up best practices, deploy evidence-based practices and test unique approaches to drive health care innovation,” said Jay Bhatt, DO, MPH, MPA, FACP, Chief Health Officer, IHA. “They are taking a deeper dive into their data to identify actionable opportunities to not only help improve the delivery of care and patient outcomes, but also to promote the health and wellness of their communities.”

About Presence Saint Joseph Hospital- Elgin

Presence Saint Joseph Hospital in Elgin is known for providing leading-edge technologies and holistic care with compassion for the individual. We offer a comprehensive range of high quality preventive, diagnostic and therapeutic services including acute inpatient care, outpatient care, home health, and educational outreach programs. Recognized for advanced heart, orthopedics, stroke, cancer and rehabilitation services; Presence Saint Joseph is a part of Presence Health.

About Presence Health

Created in November 2011, presence Health is the largest Catholic health system based in Illinois. With over 150 sites of care, including 11 hospitals Presence Health has 20,000 employees, 4,000 medical professionals and a revenue base of $2.6 billion.

About the Illinois Hospital Association

The Illinois Hospital Association, with offices in Naperville, Springfield and Washington, D.C., advocates for Illinois’ more than 200 hospitals and nearly 50 health systems as they serve their patients and communities. IHA members provide a broad range of services – not just within their walls, but across the continuum of health care and in their communities. Reflecting the diversity of the state, IHA members consist of nonprofit, investor-owned, and public hospitals in the following categories: community, safety net, rural, critical access, specialty, and teaching hospitals, including academic medical centers. For more information, see www.ihatoday.org. Like us on Facebook. Follow us on Twitter.

PHOTO CAPTION:  IHA’s CEO and President Maryjane Wurth (left) and IHA Chief Health Officer Jay Bhatt, DO (right) present the IHA 2015 Quality Excellence Achievement Award to Presence Saint Joseph Hospital representatives Patricia Gawrys and Karen Ramos, who helped lead the formation of a unique collaborative to improve orthopedic outcomes at Presence Saint Joseph.