News Stories
Jan/30 - Seven rural Minnesota communities to build palliative care programs : Jan 27, 2012
Most groups include hospitals
Seven rural Minnesota community groups recently were selected to participate in Stratis Health's
new Rural Palliative Care Community Development Project to establish or strengthen palliative
care programs. Most of the groups include hospitals.
Under the project, more than 40 organizations receive one-on-one support and technical
assistance in this two-year project that receives funding support from UCare.
The teams and their lead organizations are:
- Cloquet/Carlton County: Community Memorial Hospital Association
- Dawson: Johnson Memorial Homecare
- Kenyon: Kenyon Senior Living
- Madelia Community Hospital & Clinic Service Area: Madelia Community Hospital
- Madison: Madison Hospital Home Care Agency
- Moose Lake: Mercy Hospital
- Virginia: Essentia Health East Range Hospice
More information is available here.
Jan/30 - RARE webinar on involving patients and families set for Feb. 28 : Jan 27, 2012
The Reducing Avoidable Readmissions Effectively (RARE) program will host a webinar at
noon, Feb. 28, on how to get patients and families involved in establishing programs that assist
in reducing hospital readmissions.
Register online by Feb. 23.
Attendees will learn:
- what works to ensure patients follow up with their primary care provider;
- how to ensure patients understand their medications and other discharge instructions; and
- how to teach patients self-care, empowerment and self-efficacy post-discharge.
The speaker will be Marlene Fondrick, MSN, BSN, R.N., an independent consultant for the
Institute for Patient and Family-Centered Care.
For more information about this free webinar, contact Georgette Susla at (952) 814-7064.
This networking collaborative is part of a series of monthly RARE webinars highlighting
strategies that can be used to prevent avoidable hospital readmissions. The Minnesota Hospital
Association is a partner in the RARE campaign.
RARE webinar discussions, available as podcasts, can be found after each event at
www.RAREreadmissions.org.
Jan/30 - MHA issues call for entries for 2012 awards program : Jan 27, 2012
Nominations due Friday, March 2
The Minnesota Hospital Association (MHA) seeks nominations for its 28th annual awards
program that celebrates outstanding work by Minnesota hospitals and health systems.
Entries are due by Friday, March 2; find the entry form here: [DOC].
MHA award categories recognize excellence involving community health, workforce issues,
patient care and career promotion, for example. Honors for individuals recognize trustees,
volunteers, hospital executives, caregivers and public officials.
MHA will notify all entrants whether they have won in mid-April. A reception and dinner for
winners will take place Friday, May 18 at the Metropolitan Ballroom in suburban Minneapolis.
For more information, contact Sarah Bohnet, MHA visual communication specialist and division
assistant, at (651) 603-3494.
Jan/30 - MHA members encouraged to participate in federal advocacy efforts : Jan 27, 2012
Mark your calendars for AHA's Feb. 15 advocacy day, May 6-9 annual meeting
Over the next few months, federal lawmakers are once again under pressure to identify offsets to
finance the Social Security payroll tax holiday, emergency unemployment insurance benefits
extension and the physician payment fix. Making cuts in payments for hospital services is on the
table.
Last week, Minnesota Hospital Association (MHA) staff traveled to Washington, D.C. to meet
with Minnesota congressional delegation health-care staff members on key issues of concern to
hospitals. (See key messages, PDF). MHA members are urged to reinforce these messages at the
American Hospital Association's (AHA's) special advocacy day Feb. 15.
Political stakes remain high for hospitals. MHA members' help also is needed to deliver a unified
message during the AHA annual meeting in Washington D.C., set for May 6-9.
AHA will host a strong lineup of speakers at its annual conference. Presenters will address the
most pressing issues facing hospitals, and more than 1,500 attendees are expected. The gathering,
then, is a unique opportunity for hospital leaders to network with their peers across the country.
In addition, MHA staff will schedule congressional office visits and will help prepare members
for those visits during a special briefing.
To register for the AHA annual meeting, visit the AHA website. A couple of weeks prior to the meeting, MHA staff will send participants a packet
with additional information on special "Minnesota-only" events.
For more information contact MHA's vice president of federal relations/workforce, Ann Gibson, at (651) 603-3527.
Jan/27 - Media coverage of Minnesota's 2011 adverse health event report highlights overall harm down : Jan 27, 2012
Hospitals' perspectives included in messages
Media coverage of Minnesota's 2011 adverse health events report highlighted Minnesota
hospitals' numerous initiatives to reduce adverse events.
And stories reflected the fact that although the number of adverse events increased since 2010,
those events led to fewer serious injuries or illnesses and fewer deaths. In fact, harm to patients
was at a four-year low.
Nevertheless, hospitals realize they must continue to aggressively combat adverse events, MHA
President and Chief Executive Officer Lawrence Massa told reporters.
"While we were pleased that the overall level of harm was down, we know we have more work
ahead to continue to reduce patient harm and adverse events," he said.
Thirty-seven of the 43 articles that were published about the Minnesota Department of Health's
annual report, issued Jan. 19, reflected information in MHA's key messages about the study. For
example, the articles discussed the fact that hospitals are using what they learn from reporting to
find new ways to make care better and safer, and that that approach is working.
Several articles covered specific hospital initiatives. For example, the Associated Press piece
described an initiative at Regions Hospital in St. Paul to especially target pressure ulcers. The
Albert Lea Tribune story featured details about how Mayo Clinic Health System hospitals,
including the one in Albert Lea, are working to ensure that surgical objects are not inadvertently
left behind in patients. And the Willmar West Central Tribune mentioned how Rice Memorial
Hospital in Willmar has used MHA's patient safety campaign to prevent retained objects in
mothers during childbirth.
Of the 43 adverse event stories, 22 were original articles, and 21 were versions of or the original
Associated Press piece. Twenty-seven stories either mentioned the Minnesota Hospital
Association or quoted its president and CEO. Another seven articles quoted representatives of
Minnesota hospitals.
The tone of the articles was positive in 28 articles; neutral in 13 articles and negative in two
articles and in one headline. As of Wednesday, more than 2 million people may have seen a
related article, heard something on the radio or in a podcast, watched something on television or
read something on a Web page or blog. In addition, MHA's social media news release about the
report garnered about 900 full-page reads within a week after the report was issued.
Key quotes from the coverage:
- Recent success in preventing falls probably explains the lower level of patient harm, said
Lawrence Massa, president of the Minnesota Hospital Association. - St. Paul Pioneer
Press
- "We've got a lot of work to do," Massa said. "While we have made progress in a number
of areas, we haven't made progress in others." - Pioneer Press
- Massa said the increase (in pressure ulcers) could stem from a growing awareness of how
easily pressure ulcers can form around devices such as cervical collars and oxygen masks. - Pioneer Press
- Massa said the mistakes (wrong procedures) can occur because of miscommunication
between clinics and hospitals during the scheduling of surgeries and other invasive
procedures. - Associated Press
- "We were very pleased to see that the overall level of harm that was reported ... was
down, even though the total number of events was up," said Lawrence Massa. - Associated Press
Also, following is a sampling of headlines on the issue:
- "Minnesota medical mistakes increase, but harm to patients at four-year low"- Pioneer Press
- "Hospital mistakes causing serious injury or death lowest since 2007" - Minnesota Public
Radio News
- "Minnesota medical mistakes up, but fewer cases of harm" - Associated Press
- "Wrong surgery cases hit a high" -Minneapolis StarTribune
For more information about the adverse health events report, contact Tania Daniels, MHA patient
safety vice president, at (651) 603-3517 or Julie Apold, MHA patient safety director, at (651)
603-3538. For information about coverage of the report, contact Wendy Burt, MHA
communications and public relations vice president, at (651) 603-3549.
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