Springfield, MA (PRWEB) October 02, 2014
Mercy Medical Center announced dramatic improvements in patient care quality measures since launching CareConnect in 2013, a hospital-wide change in culture, processes and technology designed to deliver the best quality care at the lowest possible costs. The hospital collaborated with Georgia-based Care Logistics to establish a logistics-based Hospital Operating System to power CareConnect , and it has documented improvements in key areas of patient care quality and efficiency:
- Reduced average patient length of stay by a full day, from 4.6 to 3.6.
- Reduced observed-to-expected (O/E) ratio for targeted discharges from 1.34 to 1.06 over a nine-month period.
- Cut by more than half the number of patients who left the emergency room without being seen, driving the average down to 1.85 percent.
- Reduced patient 30-day readmissions to 9.6 percent, a steady and continuing improvement in one of the key care quality measures that Medicare considers for care reimbursement.
- Made a 50 percent improvement in patient satisfaction percentile ratings.
- Won the Press Ganey 2013 Commitment to Excellence Award, reflecting the largest annual increase in employee engagement scores.
“CareConnect has improved the quality of care and entire patient experience because Mercy has embraced positive changes across the entire hospital,” said Daniel P. Moen, president and CEO of Sisters of Providence Health System, which Mercy Medical Center is part of. “This is not a project, it’s a journey to continuously improve how we coordinate and provide care for patients. Everyone at every level in the hospital participates, every single day, and the patients, families and caregivers all win.”
Moen noted three key areas of change that are improving care quality, lowering costs and increasing patient satisfaction:
- New thinking, with the entire hospital rallying around a system aim of “Together, doing the right thing, the right way, every day for every patient.”
- Better processes and communications across all people and departments, led by an efficient central “hub-and-spoke” approach to coordinating care established with partner Care Logistics. People, teams and departments work in harmony to deliver the best care, keeping patients, nursing and doctors informed and productive at all times.
- Advanced technology, with logistics software built by Care Logistics specifically to power continuously efficient and high quality patient care, services and throughput.
“CareConnect and the logistics-based approach aligns operations, people and activities that were somewhat fragmented before,” said Moen. “Now patient care activities are reliable and predictable for patients, nurses and doctors.”
“As a further result, we’ve been able excel financially through greater efficiency and cost control. The last two years have been the best operating performance this institution has ever had.”
“Mercy Medical Center is a model for hospital transformation, and we’re honored to support CareConnect and Mercy’s commitment to patient-centered care,” said Karl Straub, president of Care Logistics. “CareConnect redefines the patient experience and improves efficiency across all departments. Mercy has enthusiastically adopted the logistical mindset, methodology and technology that sustain the greatest quality care delivered at the lowest possible costs.”
About Care Logistics: Care Logistics partners with hospitals to provide the only logistical control system for patient throughput. It combines a breakthrough approach to efficient care coordination with logistics software built to orchestrate throughput. The result: Reliable and predictable operations that dramatically, continuously improve throughput, care quality and experience.
For more information, contact Care Logistics at (800) 930-0870, or learn more about the dramatic results Care Logistics customers are achieving at CareLogistics.com.
About Mercy Medical Center: Mercy Medical Center is a community hospital with many tertiary level healthcare services. Located in Springfield, Massachusetts, Mercy Medical Center is well-known for its tradition of providing patients with a high-touch, holistic approach to health care—along with having the very latest in medical technology. Mercy Medical Center provides care beyond treatment of illnesses and injuries with wellness programs, support groups and educational programs.
Contact: Care Logistics®
Doug Walker, 800-930-0870
dwalker(At)carelogistics(Dot)com