NASSAU UNIVERSITY MEDICAL CENTER HOSTS STATEWIDE TELECONFERENCE IN CONJUNCTION WITH THE HEALTH ASSOCIATION OF NEW YORK STATE ON QUALITY HEALTH CARE AND VENTILATOR ASSOCIATED PNEUMONIA REDUCTION PROGRAM
November 21, 2008
Contact: Shelley Lotenberg
516-572-6055
shelley@numc.edu
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
NASSAU UNIVERSITY MEDICAL CENTER HOSTS STATEWIDE TELECONFERENCE IN CONJUNCTION WITH THE HEALTH ASSOCIATION OF NEW YORK STATE ON QUALITY HEALTH CARE AND VENTILATOR ASSOCIATED PNEUMONIA REDUCTION PROGRAM
East Meadow, NY…….Nassau University Medical Center, in conjunction with the Health Association of New York State (“HANYS”), along with St. Peter’s Hospital of Albany, hosted a statewide teleconference on quality health care on November 19. NUMC presented its very successful Ventilator-Associated Pneumonia (VAP) Reduction Program, along with its outstanding results, including zero VAPs for the months of June and September.
Dr. Ken Steier, Associate Medical Director, Patient Safety Office and VAP Team Chair at the Nassau University Medical Center, presented the information, along with the details of NUMC’s comprehensive plan for VAP reduction. This is one of many patient care initiatives currently underway at NUMC.
There was an extended question and answer session from hospitals across New York State, and several hospitals are planning to implement similar programs. NUMC’s successful program has also been chosen for publication in the Safety Net Magazine, a publication of the National Association of Public Hospitals.
Steven J. Walerstein, MD, Senior Vice President for Medical Affairs and Medical Director for the Nassau Health Care Corporation, stated: “Pneumonia that develops in patients on ventilators is widely known to increase the risk of patient death and disability. In addition, the development of pneumonia in a ventilated patient can greatly extend the length of their hospital stay and increase health care costs.”
Kenneth Steier, DO, MPH, MHA, MGH, who presented details on NUMC’s successful VAP program, added: “Although these are not always preventable, the development of a Ventilator-Associated Pneumonia program at hospitals can greatly reduce the number of these occurrences and save lives, as well as getting patients home faster. The NUMC VAP program includes nationally recognized safety measures, such as keeping the head of the bed elevated, minimizing sedation, providing ulcer and blood clot prophylaxis, and aggressive oral care.”
“NUMC nurses, pharmacy and physicians have made a commitment to providing this high level of care, which has resulted in these publicly recognized positive outcomes for our patients.” For more information on NUMC’s ventilator associated pneumonia program, please contact Dr. Steier at ksteier@numc.edu.