ScrippsHealth: quality planning for clinical processes of care.
Project Overview: In 1991, Scripps Memorial Hospital developed clinical pathways (called CareTracs) for four DRGs in cardiovascular surgery (DRGs 104, 105, 106, and 107) in order to stabilize those clinical processes, collect data on them, and make improvements.


RESULTS
In the first six months the CareTracs were in place, lengths of stay decreased by 20 to 30 percent and charges were reduced by approximately 20 percent. Patients in DRG 107 (coronary artery bypass graft without cardiac catheterization), on average, now spend less time in ICU and are extubated sooner -- improvements that have, in turn, reduced the incidence of nosocomial pneumonia.
ScrippsHealth.
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Andersson
D002140:California; D016507:Cardiology Service, Hospital / Q000592:standards*; D002318:Cardiovascular Diseases / Q000601:surgery*; D002985:Clinical Protocols / Q000592:standards*; D006801:Humans; D008332:Management Quality Circles; D017063:Outcome Assessment, Health Care / Q000706:statistics & numerical data