title: Improving antibiotic delivery time to pneumonia patients: continuous quality improvement in action.
abstract: A multidisciplinary team simplified the process of antibiotic delivery to patients admitted with community-acquired pneumonia and successfully implemented key changes that resulted in improved clinical practice and patient satisfaction at Providence Medical Center. Within 6 months of implementing an emergency room preadmission procedure, an antibiotic treatment protocol, and a sputum collection protocol, the average antibiotic initiation time dropped from 6.8 hours to 3.6 hours. Recommendations made for antibiotic selection and dosing led to a cost savings of over $109,000 per year. Highlighted in this article are several quality improvement tools, as well as practical tips and advice on effective team building.
authors.affiliation: Quality Management Department, Providence Medical Center, Portland, OR.
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Rollins
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Thomasson
authors.forename: B
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Sperry
mesh_terms: D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents / Q000191:economics / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D017714:Community-Acquired Infections / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000191:economics / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000451:nursing; D017598:Efficiency, Organizational; D004636:Emergency Service, Hospital / Q000592:standards*; D006801:Humans; D015274:Interdepartmental Relations; D009738:Nursing Service, Hospital / Q000592:standards*; D009922:Oregon / Q000453:epidemiology; D010348:Patient Care Team / Q000458:organization & administration*; D011014:Pneumonia / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000191:economics / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000451:nursing; D013997:Time Factors; D017749:Total Quality Management / Q000458:organization & administration*
chemical_list: D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents