Running Head: Quality Improvement Project

Quality Improvement Project

Jessica Carter

Rappahannock Community College

Quality Improvement Project 2

Analysis

Quality improvement projects in healthcare are created to advance safety and healing in

patients for improved outcomes. These projects have improved many aspects of healthcare from

improved medication administration to even saving patients’ lives. Nursing care partners, nurses,

doctors, nurse practitioners, physician’s assistants, physical therapists, and even pharmacists are

just a few interdisciplinary team members that are affected and benefited by quality

improvement projects.

At Sentara Williamsburg Medical Center, many policies and protocols have been created

for quality improvements. Interdisciplinary team members are educated and trained on these

protocols as well as new quality improvement projects to improve the quality of care the patients

receive. On the 4 North unit of Sentara Williamsburg Medical Center, many of the quality

improvements can be seen immediately after entering a patient’s room. Such quality

improvements include Sequential Compression Devices or SCDs, rubber floor mats, copper-

infused bedspreads, incentive spirometers, hand sanitizers next to every hospital room, beds in

lowest position, call bells in reach, gait belts, bed and chair alarms, etc. These are just a few of

the quality improvements that have been implemented to increase patients’ safety and healing.

The three quality improvement projects that have been implemented at Sentara

Williamsburg Medical Center that will be looked at are the copper-infused bedspreads for faster

healing, Sequential Compression Devices for increased blood flow and decreased clots, and hand

sanitizers for infection prevention.

Quality Improvement Project 3

Quality Improvement Project

Quality improvements like handwashing, specifically with alcohol-based hand sanitizers,

have been known to help decrease infection rates. (Hilburn, Hammond, Fendler, & Groziak,

2003) However, despite many healthcare providers increasing their use of hand sanitizers for

hand washing with the knowledge that it significantly decreases the chances of a patient getting

an infection, visitors also bring in bacteria and viruses from outside the hospital and introduce

them to the patient and if they don’t also handwash, infections are bound to happen. Recent

research has shown that if hand sanitizer is located right outside of the room, the visitors and

healthcare providers alike were more likely to use it than if they were next to hand washing

stations. (Hobbs, Robinson, Neyens, & Steed, 2016) This shows that with proper positioning and

visual reminders for both visitors and healthcare providers, patients will have a better chance of

not getting hospital acquired infections or HAIs.

Sequential Compression Devices or SCDs are devices used to prevent a very serious

complication of low mobility—venous thromboembolisms or blood clots that occur in the legs

and travel to the lungs. They work by messaging the legs to stimulate blood flow to the legs and

back to the heart even while a patient is in bed. A constant flow of blood to and from the heart

significantly decreases the opportunity for the blood to clot or form a bigger clot for those that

have an incision due to surgery. Despite evidence that supports SCDs in their fight against

venous thromboembolisms or deep vein thrombosis, SCD compliance is surprisingly low in

multiple hospitals due to a lack of devices on each unit. (Muramoto, 2017) Efforts have been

made to increase the number of SCDs in each hospital on each unit to hopefully prevent all

preventable venous thromboembolisms or deep vein thrombosis.

Quality Improvement Project 4

While still relatively a new quality improvement, copper-infused linens have made

massive strides in prevent infections and accelerating healing. (Montero et al., 2019) This allows

copper, a known antibacterial, to protect the patient, visitors, medical professionals, and new

patients by having copper infused into most hard surfaces in the hospital room. (Burke & Butler,

2018) Many interdisciplinary team members are benefitted from copper in hospitals including

nurses by preventing infections and wounds, pharmacists by preventing a constant need for

antibiotics, surgeons by preventing infections at the surgical site and having complications, and

of course the patients by allowing them to go home sooner which benefits them in many ways.

Copper-infused linens also help prevent hospital acquired infections or HAIs, a global problem

that’s a large topic for quality improvement projects. (L.P., R., & A.H., 2019)

In 2014, Sentara added copper into 16 ICU beds at Sentara Norfolk General Hospital and

129 beds in the new wing at Sentara Leigh Hospital. This clinical trial made Sentara a leading

contributor to research on copper-infused linens. (Gauding, 2016) Since completing the clinical

trial back in 2016, Sentara has implemented copper-infused linens in all of the facilities

including Sentara Williamsburg Medical Center. During the clinical trial, there was a 78%

decrease in infections such as C-diff, MRSA, and VRE in patients with copper-infused linens.

(Hinsa-Leasure, Nartey, Vaverka, & Schmidt, 2016)

In conclusion, hospitals are making strides to incorporate copper-infused linens and hard

surfaces into their facilities because they have been found to reduce infections significantly.

Despite being costly up front, copper in hospitals have reduced number of HAIs as well as

decrease a patient’s time in the hospital. This allows the hospital to save more money and

ultimately take care of more patients.

Quality Improvement Project 5

References

Montero et al. (2019). Antimicrobial properties of a novel copper-based composite coating with

potential for use in healthcare facilities. Antimicrobial Resistance & Infection Control

volume.

Burke, G. H., & Butler, J. P. (2018). Analysis of the role of copper impregnated composite hard

surfaces, bed linens and patient gowns in reducing healthcare-associated infection rates.

International Journal of Infection Control.

Gauding, D. (2016, October 26). World’s largest clinical trial on copper a success at Sentara.

Retrieved from Sentara:

https://www.sentara.com/hampton-roads-virginia/aboutus/news/news-articles/copper-

clinical-trial-findings.aspx

Grota, P. G., & Grant, P. S. (2018). Environmental Infection Prevention. Critical Care Nursing

Quarterly, pp. 38-46.

Hilburn, J. M., Hammond, B. S., Fendler, E. J., & Groziak, P. A. (2003). Use of alcohol hand

sanitizer as an infection control strategy in an acute care facility. American Journal of

Infection Control, 109-116.

Hinsa-Leasure, S. M., Nartey, Q. B., Vaverka, J. B., & Schmidt, M. G. (2016). Copper alloy

surfaces sustain terminal cleaning levels in a rural hospital. American Journal of

Infection Control.

Hobbs, M. A., Robinson, S. M., Neyens, D. M., & Steed, C. M. (2016). Visitor characteristics

and alcohol-based hand sanitizer dispenser locations at the hospital entrance: Effect on

visitor use rates. American Journal of Infection Control, 258-262.

Quality Improvement Project 6

L.P., A., R., T., & A.H., S. (2019). The Use of Copper as an Antimicrobial Agent in Health Care,

Including Obstetrics and Gynecology. American Society for Microbiology.

Muramoto, S. M. (2017, May 19). Increasing Sequential Compression Device Compliance to

Decrease Venous Thromboembolisms and Improve Nursing Documentation. Retrieved

from http://repository.usfca.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1594&context=capstone