Kimberly-Clark Health Care Announces Recipients of HAI Watchdog Awards

Kimberly-Clark Health Care announces the recipients of the second annual HAI WATCHDOG Awards, created to recognize the efforts of dedicated healthcare professionals working together to prevent healthcare-associated infections (HAIs). The awards program, an initiative of the HAI WATCHDOG Community, facilitates the sharing of best practices among clinicians and recognizes four exceptional participants with an educational grant.

This year we expanded the reach and recognition of the WATCHDOG Awards by creating independent awards programs in the United Kingdom, Australia and New Zealand, and once again the response and quality of submissions exceeded our expectations, says Joanne Bauer, president of Kimberly-Clark Health Care, The entries address a variety of issues that healthcare facilities encounter, and we hope that by sharing these proven best practices on haiwatchdog.com, healthcare providers feel empowered to share and learn from each other, and  continue to challenge themselves to strive for and maintain the highest levels of infection control.

The 2011 WATCHDOG Award winners, judged by a panel of infection prevention healthcare professionals, demonstrated measureable results in the area of infection control and address a range of issues including ventilator-associated pneumonia (VAP), central line-associated bloodstream infections (CLABSI) and methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA). The Clinicians Choice category recognizes education and awareness programs with non-measureable results and the winner was selected by online public voting of fellow healthcare professionals.

I was thoroughly impressed with the winners this year. There was a real change in culture and attitude and thats ultimately what made the programs so successful, says William Jarvis, former director of the Office of Extramural Research at the CDCs National Center for Infectious Diseases. It is my hope that other healthcare professionals learn from these innovative HAI prevention and reduction strategies and are motivated to take action within their own facilities.

2011 Award Recipients

Panel Judged Entries

Fewer than 300 beds:

 Mary Black Memorial Hospital, Spartanburg, S.C.After having a VAP rate above the national average for two consecutive years, the ICU nurses and respiratory therapists developed a Ventilator Bundle Monitor form and protocol to effectively monitor mechanically ventilated patients. The new regimen and requirements led to only one VAP incident in 2011. 

More than 300 beds:

 Barnes-Jewish Hospital, St. Louis, Mo.To combat the high rate and increased risk of CLABSI in its surgical intensive care unit, the hospital formed an ICU multi-disciplinary committee and developed a daily central line checklist of best practices. The hospital committee also standardized documentation, educational programming, hand hygiene and compliance checks. As a result, the hospital reduced its CLABSI rate by 90 percent, and achieved a zero percent Clostridium difficile rate.

Healthcare System:

 Michael E. DeBakey VA Medical Center, Houston, TexasIn the quest to improve patient care, the hospital developed a campaign to Zero in on MRSA by implementing proven best practices gradually throughout the facility. Using the concepts of ownership, emphasis and reinforcement, as well as investments in technology and staff, the centers 15 in-patient units reported zero MRSA infections after one year. This program was also recognized by the Joint Commission for Best Practices in Infection Prevention.

Clinicians Choice:

 Hallmark Health System, Medford, Mass.In an effort to reduce incidents of CLABSI infection, the hospital system commissioned a taskforce to develop educational programs, implement best practices and improve performance by learning from previous deficiencies. The goal of the system is to provide the necessary foundation for the organization to achieve and maintain infection rates of zero.

Honorable Mentions:

 Prince William Hospital, Manassas, Va.Keys for Success in the Prevention of CAUTI

 Roger Williams Medical Center, Providence, R.I.Reduce Hospital-Associated MRSA and Infection in Critical Care

 University of Mississippi Hospitals and Health System, part of the University of Mississippi Hospital & Health System, Jackson, Miss.Intervention to Reduce CLABSI in the Adult Critical Care Hospital

 St. Francis Hospital, Columbus, Ga.Waging War on Sepsis

 Centra Health, Lynchburg, Va.How Low Can We Go? A Healthcare Systems Successful Surgical Site Infection Reduction Program

Winners of the UK, Australia and New Zealand WATCHDOG Awards will be announced later this year. The Australia and New Zealand programs are open for submissions until September 30, 2012.

The 2012 HAI WATCHDOG Awards will open for submissions this summer. For more information, visit www.haiwatchdog.com or facebook.com/haiwatchdog.