MedStaff Update: February 2014

Conditional Discharge Orders Help Meet New Discharge by Noon Target

A new conditional discharge order that went into effect on January 5 aims to strengthen communication among the care team and improve physician and nursing workflows surrounding patient discharges. It is just one part of a larger effort to maximize the hospital's limited capacity by significantly increasing the number of patients discharged by noon.

Specially Trained Volunteers Mobilize for Disaster Relief

When disasters such as the typhoon in the Philippines occur, medical teams from around the world mobilize to send help. But these missions tend to be large and slow. Stanford has created a smaller, nimbler disaster relief team known as SEMPER, the Stanford Emergency Medicine Program for Emergency Response.

New Program Targets South Asians' Risk of Cardiovascular Disease

South Asians have a disproportionate risk of cardiovascular disease—four times higher than the general population—and the disease strikes this group at an early age. Yet little is understood about why this is occurring. A new program at Stanford is addressing this alarming trend through disease management, prevention, education and commitment to research.

Patient Safety: Lessons Learned

Use "Time Outs" to Re-Establish Focus and Eliminate Medical Errors

By Steve Chinn, DPM, MS, MBA, Director, Accreditation, Quality & Patient Safety

What is one of the common reasons why the following events occur?
In a recent NBA game, an All-Star point guard was consistently lighting up the other team from outside the three-point line. The next time down, instead of taking a shot from beyond the arc, he rocketed a pass to his veteran teammate, who was not ready for the ball. The ball flew off his hands and resulted in a turnover to the other team.

FEATURED GUEST CONTRIBUTOR

Changing the Way Operations Works
By James Hereford, Chief Operating Officer

Having served as chief operating officer for Stanford Hospital & Clinics for over a year now, I have been able to closely observe how our system works to support the delivery of care. I have drawn several conclusions from these observations that I would like to share:

Stanford has amazing talent, especially the clinical staff who are engaged in the delivery of care.

Those individuals work very hard to deliver the highest level of care possible.

Our care isn't consistently delivered at a level that is commensurate with what our patients expect, and what we should expect. This is despite the level of talent and hard work, and the number of people involved in the clinical enterprise.