How can the Nurses collaborate to prevent and manage Pressure ulcers (bed Sore) - Research Paper Example

The panel came up with recommendation on preventive strategies such as patient education, clinician training, development of communication and terminology materials, implementation of toolkits and protocols. Behavioral aspects like adherence of the healthcare provider as well as the patient were also given recommendations. The collaborative effort of the learned American healthcare professionals who have the resources and determination has transformed the impending challenge of the CMS policy to an opportunity for the improvement of the hospital system and its patients.

The Pressure Ulcer Collaborative project, coordinated by the New Jersey Hospital Association (NJHA), was conceptualized based on the negative effects of pressure ulcers such as pain and disfigurement on patients, the burden of care to the healthcare industry, and the state and federal reporting requirements – the U.S. Health and Human Services in particular calls for a 50% reduction in pressure ulcers among nursing home residents by 2010. A comparative method to analyze data based on the guidelines developed by the NJHA Quality Institute Department and the Department of Continuing Care Services was used by the 150 organization who participated in the project.

After a 12-month period (October 2005 to October 2006), the incidence and prevalence of pressure ulcers among the participating organizations showed a 30% decrease. By May 2007, the end of the second year of the Pressure Ulcer Collaborative project, a 70% decrease was achieved. The skin assessment, Braden assessment, and frequency of skin assessment requirements to meet the guideline criteria were not sufficient at the onset, thus the project was rolled out in all organizations who participated by April 2006 only.

The project was able to give the healthcare staff a more detailed and comprehensive focus on patient care improvement, access to guidelines and protocols, and commitment to consistency and standardization in