Releasing Time to Care© Pilot Site Update (May 2010)
Patient Status at a Glance (PSAG) module
All pilot site teams are busy implementing the PSAG module, which focuses on visually displaying patient information on a centrally located board, to reduce staff interruptions, improve the safety of shift handovers, improve direct care and discharge planning, and save staff time. Before designing the patient information board, teams carefully analyze common reasons why they are interrupted and why they search for and repeat information. Unit staff carry out a series of small cycle tests until they are confident the board meets their needs. The RTC© team at Moose Jaw Union Hospital in Saskatchewan reduced the length of shift handovers from approximately 35 – 45 minutes per shift to 10 – 15 minutes per shift by implementing the PSAG module, and CHQI anticipate similar improvement in Ontario.
Process module selection
Between April and August, each pilot site will implement two process modules that they have selected to address priority improvement opportunities (e.g. shift handovers, medication administration, rounding processes). The Shift Handovers module, for example, enables teams to reduce repetitive charting practices, reduce time spent looking for information in multiple locations, and increase direct patient care time. Teams will measure how well processes work before and after improvements are made, and will audit the new care processes on an ongoing basis.
Learning Session #2
CHQI is actively planning the second RTC© Learning Session, scheduled for June 21. These sessions, organized for RTC© pilot site Improvement Teams and Executive Sponsors, feature educational lectures and facilitate peer-to-peer mentoring in quality improvement methods and tools.