Authors

  1. Delmore, Barbara
  2. Lebovits, Sarah
  3. Baldock, Philip
  4. Suggs, Barbara
  5. Ayello, Elizabeth A.

Abstract

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services' regulations regarding nonpayment for hospital-acquired conditions such as pressure ulcers have prompted a marked increase in focus on preventive care. Our hospital also used this change in payment policy as an opportunity to strengthen our pressure ulcer prevention practices. We used an 8-spoke prevention wheel to develop and implement practice changes that reduced pressure ulcer incidence from 7.3% to 1.3% in 3 years. Because it is about the journey, we will describe the mechanisms we designed and implemented, and identify strategies that worked or did not work as we promulgated a quality improvement process for pressure ulcer prevention in our large urban hospital center.