Care For PA

Today's media sources--such as print newspapers, television and radio stations, and Internet sites--are often among the first to report on the latest ground breaking medical research or the latest prescription drugs. However, there is a very important, but less well known, movement going on in health care that's helping to create a whole new standard for health care delivery. That movement is the creation of "rapid response teams�? (also called "medical response teams�?) within hospitals, and it's saving lives.

In the traditional hospital setting, some units often have specialized medical teams ready to assist patients who develop sudden heart or breathing problems. Because studies show that the early response to such warning signs has led to a 26 percent decrease in preventable deaths, the concept of rapid response teams is being expanded to other areas of hospitals as well.

One such area is the critical care unit where nursing and other medical staff are specially trained to identify subtle signs of distress--which are often evident hours before a patient's condition drastically changes. The nurses then call in a specialized team of health care professionals (usually an intensive care nurse, respiratory therapist, and often a physician) who are able to intervene and treat the patient before an emergency situation occurs, most often a heart attack. Because treatment is initiated before the crisis happens, lives are saved.

It's really not as important to know the name of the initiative as it is to understand the change in thinking that's going on across the nation and within Pennsylvania's hospitals and how it can affect the care you receive.

"Hospitals and health care systems have begun to cooperate at unprecedented levels,�? says Don Berwick from the
Institute for Health Care Improvement. Without government mandates or financial incentives, hospitals across Pennsylvania as well as across the nation are coming together to exchange solutions and strategies for quality improvement. "There's a huge movement going on and it's making a difference in the lives of patients.�?

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