6 research outputs found
Strategies for the successful implementation of disinfecting port protectors to reduce CLABSI in a large tertiary care teaching hospital
Disinfecting port protectors are a supplement to the central line–associated bloodstream infection prevention bundle as an optional recommendation from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Despite evidence of effectiveness, few centers have successfully reported systematic, sustained implementation of these devices. In this article, we discuss a successful implementation in a large tertiary care teaching hospital, using an evidence-based, multidisciplinary approach
Assessment of a Universal Preprocedural Screening Program for COVID-19
Objectives
Study objectives were to: (1) Determine the value of a COVID-19 universal preprocedural screening program; and (2) Using the results of asymptomatic positive screens, determine the safety of resuming elective procedures.
Design
This was a descriptive study detailing the process and findings from implementation of a COVID-19 universal preprocedural screening program.
Setting
An adult academic tertiary center in Indiana.
Patients
Patients were included in the analysis if they were screened 96 hours prior to or within 24 hours after undergoing a procedure in the operating room, cardiac catheterization lab, or endoscopy.
Methods
A report was generated from the electronic health record of patients undergoing procedures from a six week period of time (May 4th-June 14th, 2020). Health records for positive screens were reviewed and classified as symptomatic if they met either criteria: (1) screen performed due to presence of COVID-19 symptoms; (2) documentation of symptoms at the time of the screen. Patients with a positive screen that did not meet symptomatic criteria were classified as asymptomatic. Descriptive statistics were used to calculate frequencies and percentages for the included sample.
Results
The initial sample included 2,194 patients, comprised of 46 positive and 2,148 negative screens. Out of the 46 patients who had a positive test, 17 were asymptomatic, resulting in an asymptomatic rate of 0.79% (17/2165).
Conclusion
Findings validated the value of the program through identification of a low rate of asymptomatic positive screens and procedural team adoption and sustainment. Findings may help inform decision making of like organizations attempting to enhance safety while resuming elective procedures
The Indiana Learning Health System Initiative: Early experience developing a collaborative, regional learning health system
Introduction
Learning health systems (LHSs) are usually created and maintained by single institutions or healthcare systems. The Indiana Learning Health System Initiative (ILHSI) is a new multi-institutional, collaborative regional LHS initiative led by the Regenstrief Institute (RI) and developed in partnership with five additional organizations: two Indiana-based health systems, two schools at Indiana University, and our state-wide health information exchange. We report our experiences and lessons learned during the initial 2-year phase of developing and implementing the ILHSI.
Methods
The initial goals of the ILHSI were to instantiate the concept, establish partnerships, and perform LHS pilot projects to inform expansion. We established shared governance and technical capabilities, conducted a literature review-based and regional environmental scan, and convened key stakeholders to iteratively identify focus areas, and select and implement six initial joint projects.
Results
The ILHSI successfully collaborated with its partner organizations to establish a foundational governance structure, set goals and strategies, and prioritize projects and training activities. We developed and deployed strategies to effectively use health system and regional HIE infrastructure and minimize information silos, a frequent challenge for multi-organizational LHSs. Successful projects were diverse and included deploying a Fast Healthcare Interoperability Standards (FHIR)-based tool across emergency departments state-wide, analyzing free-text elements of cross-hospital surveys, and developing models to provide clinical decision support based on clinical and social determinants of health. We also experienced organizational challenges, including changes in key leadership personnel and varying levels of engagement with health system partners, which impacted initial ILHSI efforts and structures. Reflecting on these early experiences, we identified lessons learned and next steps.
Conclusions
Multi-organizational LHSs can be challenging to develop but present the opportunity to leverage learning across multiple organizations and systems to benefit the general population. Attention to governance decisions, shared goal setting and monitoring, and careful selection of projects are important for early success
Thermodynamic Computing
The hardware and software foundations laid in the first half of the 20th
Century enabled the computing technologies that have transformed the world, but
these foundations are now under siege. The current computing paradigm, which is
the foundation of much of the current standards of living that we now enjoy,
faces fundamental limitations that are evident from several perspectives. In
terms of hardware, devices have become so small that we are struggling to
eliminate the effects of thermodynamic fluctuations, which are unavoidable at
the nanometer scale. In terms of software, our ability to imagine and program
effective computational abstractions and implementations are clearly challenged
in complex domains. In terms of systems, currently five percent of the power
generated in the US is used to run computing systems - this astonishing figure
is neither ecologically sustainable nor economically scalable. Economically,
the cost of building next-generation semiconductor fabrication plants has
soared past $10 billion. All of these difficulties - device scaling, software
complexity, adaptability, energy consumption, and fabrication economics -
indicate that the current computing paradigm has matured and that continued
improvements along this path will be limited. If technological progress is to
continue and corresponding social and economic benefits are to continue to
accrue, computing must become much more capable, energy efficient, and
affordable. We propose that progress in computing can continue under a united,
physically grounded, computational paradigm centered on thermodynamics. Herein
we propose a research agenda to extend these thermodynamic foundations into
complex, non-equilibrium, self-organizing systems and apply them holistically
to future computing systems that will harness nature's innate computational
capacity. We call this type of computing "Thermodynamic Computing" or TC.Comment: A Computing Community Consortium (CCC) workshop report, 36 page