Pressure Ulcer Prevention
::
::
::
::
::
::
::
::
::
::
::
::
|
|
WE USED QUALITY INDICATORS TO EVALUATE CARE
For our "schematic" we used a series of 11 quality indicators (QI) related to PU care for nursing home residents. Presented as a series of if/then statements, these QIs outline the PU assessment and treatment process, thereby providing a basis for evaluating actual care practices.
It should be noted that these QIs are not, technically speaking, practice guidelines, though they are based closely on existing guidelines. Practice guidelines, such as those listed above, "aim to define optimal or ideal care in the context of complex decision-making," writes RAND, the southern California think tank that helped us developed the QIs. In most nursing homes, however, optimal care is virtually synonymous with impossible care: it almost invariably requires more staff time than most nursing homes can afford and consequently cannot be implemented under usual conditions. So with a nod to real life, the QIs lower the bar. Explains RAND (6): They "set a minimal standard for acceptable care-standards that, if not met, almost ensure that the care is of poor quality." (Italics ours.)
Based on expert opinion and existing best-practice guidelines, all of our QI-associated PU care tasks are both related to positive outcomes for residents and feasible for nursing home staff to implement. We adopted them as our evaluation checklist, figuring that there should be no excuse for not accomplishing them.
(prev | next)
|
|
|
