The Norman Transcript

Quality care of pneumonia, intensive care patients recognized

Norman Regional Hospital earned two national awards recognizing high-quality patient care from a national healthcare alliance.

The awards were presented during the VHA Leadership Conference this week in St. Louis.

The recognition, from VHA Inc., honors Norman Regional for excellence in treating patients with pneumonia and those in the intensive care unit. The hospital was one of two nationwide to receive the award for care of pneumonia patients, and one of 26 to earn recognition for excellence in critical care.

"These awards validate the dedicated focus of our clinical staff and physicians to improve the care provided to our patients," performance improvement director Jason Fogg said.

The 2006 VHA Leadership Award for Clinical Excellence honors organizations that have distinguished themselves from other VHA members by achieving national performance standards in specific clinical categories.

To earn the award for excellent treatment of pneumonia patients, Norman Regional achieved 90 percent or greater compliance with seven specific quality-based indicators that include providing vaccinations, conducting blood tests and administering antibiotics within an appropriate amount of time.

"Patients who develop pneumonia while hospitalized have much poorer prognoses," Fogg said. "We prevent pneumonia or effectively treat pneumonia in hospitalized patients by adhering to national measures that are indicators of high-quality care."

The ICU award is presented to hospitals like Norman Regional that demonstrate measurable improvements in the unit by applying processes to eliminate infection, specifically by preventing blood stream infections among these patients.

Patients hospitalized in the intensive care unit often are sicker than other patients, and therefore are more susceptible to developing complications. Providing superior care to these patients can reduce the likelihood for complications that could lengthen hospital stays.

"By applying evidence-based measures into a critical care patient's plan of care, we are able to monitor and measure the overall rate of improvement in our patients," Fogg said.

VHA Inc., based in Irving, Texas, is a national alliance that provides supply chain management services and supports the formation of regional and national networks to help members improve their clinical and economic performance. With 18 offices across the United States, VHA serves more than 2,400 healthcare organizations nationwide.