REGULAR ROUNDS CURB USE OF CALL LIGHTS

Increasing rounds to every one or two hours reduced the use of nurse call lights for mundane prob­lems, cut back on patient falls and increased patient satisfaction, according to a study of 14 hospitals in the American Journal of Nursing.

Patient satisfaction increased due to both hourly and every-other-hour rounds, but patient falls decreased only during hourly rounds. Previous research had shown that patients usually use call lights for problems that don’t require an RN or LPN.

As part of the new experiment, aides making rounds assessed pain and contacted nurses if necessary; offered toileting; asked about patients’ position and comfort; put necessities within reach; asked if there was anything else they could take care of; and told patients when someone would be back.

While staff satisfaction wasn’t measured in the one-month study, anecdotal evidence suggests that both nurses and nursing assistants liked the change. The initially dubious staff at Northeastern Hospital in Philadelphia, for example, noticed an unfamiliar quiet descending on the floor as call-light use dropped by 65 percent. RNs pitched in on aides’ rounds and reported having more time now that they were no longer being summoned randomly by patients for minor but urgent requests like using the bathroom.

A follow-up check one year later showed that of 14 hospitals active in the study, 12 had continued the one- or two-hour rounds. Thirteen hospitals decided to expand the rounding to other units or all units.

HEALTHCARE LABOR POOL IS THE PLACE TO BE IN 2007

Without the boom going on in healthcare, the nation’s labor market would be in a coma, BusinessWeek recently reported. While 1.7 million new U.S. jobs in healthcare have been added since 2001, the number of private sector jobs outside healthcare remains stagnant.

Hiring at healthcare facilities is on a tear. For example, Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia has added the equivalent of 4,000 new full-time jobs in the past six years, nearly doubling its workforce.

And the phenomenon runs nationwide. The top four cutting-edge jobs in America all relate to healthcare, CareerBuilder.com reports. They are:

• Radiation therapists, who work with radiation oncologists to administer prescribed treatments.
• Nurse paralegals, hired to help law firms, government agencies and insurance companies with expertise on medical cases.
• Genetic counselors, who help families with inherited health issues
• Legal nurse consultants, who analyze medical information related to the law. These RNs conduct research, interview expert witnesses and help in legal processes.

Despite the hot market for health professionals, it seems employers still haven’t gotten the message about how to hang on to employees. Overall, healthcare employers’ median turnover ran at 14.1 percent in 2005, compared with 10.6 percent across industries, according to the consulting firm Watson Wyatt.

To check compensation for health professionals in your area, go to www.nurseweek.com/salary.

PREVENTING HOSPITAL STAPH INFECTIONS

Scientists have gotten a staph vaccine to work in mice against a dreaded strain of the bacterium staphylococcus aureus, the most common cause of hospital-acquired infection, reports the National Academy of Sciences.

Immunization with four antigens provided high levels of protection against the antibiotic-resistant strain, according to three microbiologists at the University of Chicago in a study published in late October in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. 

U.S. HEALTHCARE SCORES LOW

America has the world’s most expensive health care per capita but underperforms its peers by a wide margin, the Commonwealth Fund says in its latest scorecard issued this past fall.

The think tank compared healthcare using 37 measures. With 100 as the best score, the United States posted a measly 67 overall average score in promoting healthy and productive lives, rating only 71 in quality of care. On efficiency in administering the system, America scored an embarrassing 51.

Some telling statistics:

• Infant mortality is seven deaths per 1,000 live births, compared with 2.7 in the top three countries.
• The overall rate for U.S. children missing 11 or more days of school due to  illness or injury is a quarter worse than the best five U.S. states’ average rate.
• One-third of adults under 65 have trouble paying their medical bills.

The report calls for universal health insurance. Last summer, delegates to the AFT convention endorsed a single-payer system as an option.

You’ll find the Commonwealth Fund report at www.cmwf.org/publications.