journal articles
RELATION OF STOP AND WATCH TOOL USE IN A SKILLED NURSING FACILITY TO 30-DAY HOSPITAL TRANSFER RATES
C.H. Lee, V. Gruss, M. Stuercke, C.J. Ryan
Jour Nursing Home Res 2016;2:104-109
Background: Hospital readmissions in nursing home populations are rising every year. Little is known of how to prevent such hospital readmissions. The study’s purpose was to explore the relation of communication on 30-day readmission rates via the Stop and Watch (SW) Tool with Certified Nursing Assistants (CNAs) in the Interventions to Reduce Acute Care Transfers (INTERACT) program: a program implemented in skilled nursing facilities (SNFs). Objectives: The objectives were: describe the relation of the INTERACT SW Tool Use among admission/readmission patients and correlate outcomes on 30-day hospital readmission rates. Design: Quality improvement project. Setting: 234-bed skilled nursing facility in a large Chicago urban area in the United States; 3-unit facility with 91% occupancy. Participants: Licensed/registered nurses (N = 11) and CNAs (N = 21) on SNF unit with 80 residents. Intervention: INTERACT protocol, including identification of admission patients; CNAs’ daily monitoring of admission/readmission patients using the SW Tool; and licensed nurses’ review of SW Tool daily reports and follow-ups. Measurements: SW Tool use from each day, evening, and night shift; number of transfers to hospitals for readmission; and communication between CNAs and licensed nurses measured as SW Tool leading to a Situation, Background, Assessment, and Recommendation (SBAR) communication form. Results: For the four-month study period, 30-day readmission rates in the study unit decreased to 34% from over 50% at baseline. Readmission rates were associated with consistent SW Tool use (p = .007, Pearson Correlation = -0.304). Conclusions: 30-day transfer rates are reduced by CNAs’ consistent use of the SW Tool.
CITATION:
C.H. Lee ; V. Gruss ; M. Stuercke ; C.J. Ryan (2016): Relation of Stop and Watch Tool Use in a Skilled Nursing Facility to 30-Day Hospital Transfer Rates . The Journal of Nursing Home Research Science (JNHRS). http://dx.doi.org/10.14283/jnhrs.2016.16