3M: Improving outcomes through collaboration

[hr]Healthcare associated infections (HAIs) are the most common healthcare complication affecting approximately 180,000 hospital patients a year, occupying almost two million bed daysi.[hr]
3M understands it is through a combination of analysis, education, collaboration and implementation of site specific solutions, that healthcare providers are better able to reduce the incidence of HAIs in Australian healthcare institutions.
With an unrivalled history of innovation and commitment to providing infection prevention and control solutions to healthcare providers, 3M is collaborating with quality improvement teams on initiatives to support compliance with National Safety and Quality Health Service (NSQHS) Standards and improve patient outcomes.
Identifying Quality Improvement Programs
With no two healthcare organisations facing the same challenges, 3M partners with individual healthcare providers and their quality improvement teams to identify and support their specific quality improvement programs in line with national safety and quality standards.
3M is actively involved with NSQHS Standards related quality improvement programs for:

• The Productive Operating Theatre (TPOT);


• Implementing the WHO Surgical Safety  Checklist;


• Reducing Surgical Site Infections (SSIs);


• Hand Hygiene compliance; and


• Target Normothermia, a program to   achieve a sustained reduction in rates of  inadvertent perioperative hypothermia.

A partner in prevention
Infection prevention is not about products alone, it is about implementing sustainable solutions that improve patient outcomes.
With a culture steeped in quality and efficiency through Lean Six Sigma, 3M Australia is ideally positioned as a partner who understands what is needed to support hospital and healthcare organisations as they implement projects and initiatives to achieve quality process improvements aligned with the NSQHS Standards.
3M provides expert insight through a network of local and international technical specialists, scientists, clinicians, product development teams and a broad network of key opinion leaders in infection prevention; collaborating with healthcare providers to achieve best practice.
Middlemore Hospital ICU, New Zealand CLAB Safety & Quality project
Central venous lines are common in the Intensive Care Unit (ICU)—more than 50 per cent of Middlemore Hospital ICU patients have a central line on any given day.
Middlemore ICU identified Central Line Associated Bacteraemia (CLAB) as an area where patient outcomes could be improved and costs associated with additional hospital days reduced.  The cost of each CLAB has been estimated to be between ($NZD) $20,000 and $54,000ii.
Recognising there is good evidence that CLAB is a largely preventable complication, Middlemore ICU introduced a Central Line Bundle based on The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) guidelines, including a standardised Central Line insertion pack and standardised approach to Central Line maintenance.
The CDC recommends use of maximal sterile barrier precautions (including the use of a cap, mask, sterile gown, sterile gloves, and a sterile full body drape) for the insertion of CVCs and PICCs.
With no sterile full body drape locally available, 3M collaborated with the ICU Quality Improvement team to design a ‘fit for purpose’ sterile full body drape for venous access procedures that enabled Middlemore to meet the guidelines.
To support Middlemore, 3M engaged its global healthcare network providing access to international product development teams and also key opinion leaders in the area of infection prevention.
What started at Middlemore ICU became a Health Quality & Safety Commission (HQSC) national program with all 20 district health boards (DHBs) across New Zealand engaged in Target CLAB ZERO.[hr]
References
1. Productivity Commission 2009, Public and Private Hospitals, Research Report, Canberra
2. The New Zealand Medical Journal, Aiming for zero: decreasing central line associated bacteraemia in the intensive care unit; Mary E Seddon et al
If you are interested to learn more about how 3M is working with healthcare providers  or to discuss your organisation’s Quality Improvement Programs, contact your local  3M Key Account Manager or call 3M Customer Service on 1300 363 878.