St. John’s to participate in Montana asthma control program
Asthma Hospital Patient Education Action Plan and Discharge (A.H.E.A.D.)
by St. John’s Lutheran Hospital
March 30, 2011
St. John’s Lutheran Hospital has teamed up with the Montana Asthma Control Program to implement the Asthma Hospital Patient Education Action Plan and Discharge (A.H.E.A.D.) protocol, which is based on the recommendations of the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Expert Panel. The Montana Department of Health and Human Services has stated that they would like to implement the A.H.E.A.D. protocol in every hospital throughout the state as part of an effort for improvement and standardization of care and education for patients with asthma.
"St. John’s was the first hospital in the state to agree to accept this challenge," stated Robert O’Rourke, CRT, RPSGT, and Respiratory Department Manager at St. John’s. "We have many people in our community affected with this disease and it is important to us that St. John’s is providing them with the level of care that is proven to be the most effective in their outcomes. Participation in this program is also essential to St. John’s because we take great pride in focusing on the quality of care that we provide and the health of the community that we serve. When we see an opportunity to improve on those two things, it’s imperative that we make every effort to do so."
The Montana Asthma Control Program visited St. John’s in February to review charts on patients that were seen in the SJLH Emergency Department. They issued a report that described key indicators for asthma care and compared the care patients received at St. John’s to stated goals of the program, as well as provided feedback and suggestions on ways for improvement. They will visit St. John’s again in one year and review the results, and the cycle will continue in an on-going quality improvement plan.
"This is a multi-discipline protocol that involves not only the Physician, Nurses, and Respiratory Therapists that care for patients in the Emergency Room and Hospital, but it also involves St. John’s new asthma educator, Els O’Rourke, PT, AEC and all of the Primary Care Physicians that provide the follow-up treatment plan for those affected by asthma in our community," continued O’Rourke. "This truly is an effort by all of St. John’s to improve the care that we give to people in South Lincoln County who are afflicted with asthma."
For more information on the A.H.E.A.D. program, call Robert O’Rourke at 406-293-0179.
Related Links
www.sjlh.org - St. John’s Lutheran Hospital, Libby, Montana
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