CHESTNUT HILL SELECTED AS “BEST PRACTICE” IN STATE
Philadelphia, PA – On Thursday, June 24, Chestnut Hill Hospital was recognized as a “Best Practice” in the state by The Hospital and Healthsystem Association of Pennsylvania for low infection rates for central-line associated blood stream infection (CLABSI). In 2009, Hospital staff implemented new procedures that resulted in 0% CLABSIs.
The recognition came with the Pennsylvania Department of Health (DOH) release of the 2009 Healthcare Associated Infections (HAI) report for Pennsylvania Hospitals. An HAI is an infection that a patient gets while staying in a hospital or other health care facility. Lower HAIs mean less unnecessary illness and fewer days in the hospital. The report emphasized infections of two specific types: urinary tract infections associated with the use of a catheter and CLABSI. These infections are among the more common HAIs and were selected by the DOH for comparisons over time.
Chestnut Hill Hospital was one of only 16 hospitals in the state to have good performance measures in both infections categories (CAUTI and CLABSI) representing 6 percent of all Pennsylvania hospitals.
Our staff is committed to providing high-quality care for patients and embraces the goal of eliminating all health care-associated infections, says Brooks Turkel, CEO, Chestnut Hill Hospital. “Delivering excellent patient care requires rigorous attention to ongoing improvement. We are constantly assessing and improving the care we provide and implementing better systems to protect our patients and help them get well.”
Linda Russell, director of infection control at the Hospital advises, “Good communication with your primary care physician is important when it comes to healthcare associated infections.” She suggests asking your primary care physician questions about hospital guidelines for HAI prevention including signs of infection and risks for getting an infection.
For more information about healthcare associated infections in Pennsylvania and how to prevent them, please visit www.health.state.pa.us or www.cleanhandssavelives.org.