HealthStream offers performance learning management solutions to help develop your healthcare staff into leaders and reduce turnover.
View All ProductsHealthStream works with healthcare organizations to create engaging and high-quality training videos for your staff and management.
View All ProductsImprove care quality and save money by making informed decisions about your healthcare facility and staff with HealthStream's reporting analytics solution.
View All ProductsHealthStream's proven methods for the improvement and overall engagement of your healthcare staff foster a positive workplace and increase retention rates.
View All ProductsThe leadership development program from HealthStream helps mold your high-potential healthcare employees into proven leaders.
View All ProductsFulfill compliance requirements with a variety of programs and courseware designed to address critical regulatory requirements as well as educate staff to recognize and mitigate risks.
View All ProductsBy increasing your healthcare staff's focus on quality and safety with HealthStream, they can help to reduce medical errors and readmission rates.
View All ProductsLearn about what HealthStream's healthcare policy management software and how it can help aid your organization efforts.
View All ProductsHealthStream's education helps address diversity, equity, and inclusion within your organization, as well as promoting health equity in the communities you serve.
View All ProductsDeliver custom or industry designed product training directly to patient and resident care environments to reinforce proper use.
View All ProductsTeach your healthcare staff about the revenue cycle and claim management through targeted training and video tools from HealthStream.
View All ProductsNurture the skills of your nurses and medical staff to help mold them into effective leaders with development training from HealthStream.
View All ProductsIn all areas of resuscitation, from neonatal to elderly care, clinical deterioration is a risk that can be avoided with the help of HealthStream's training programs.
View All ProductsHealthStream's EMS Program offers a comprehensive, CAPCE accredited EMS course library that meets National Registry annual recertification.
View All ProductsMake sure your clinicians have the support they need to provide competent care with clinical competency training and development from HealthStream.
View All ProductsThe suite of healthcare onboarding solutions available from HealthStream aids in nurse retention and improved patient outcomes.
View All ProductsGive your healthcare staff the decision support and skills training they need with the online products available from HealthStream.
View All ProductsHealthStream's solutions allow your healthcare workforce to be confident and competent with the knowledge they are upholding the highest of standards.
View All ProductsHealthStream’s learning management system and comprehensive suite of competency management tools empower your healthcare workforce to deliver the best patient care.
View All ProductsNurseGrid and Keener - HealthStream's mobile apps built by nurses, for nurses - help nurses take control of their schedules, practice self-care, and build a more sustainable career.
View All ProductsTake the stress out of scheduling with real-time technology that engages nurses and healthcare workers from HealthStream.
View All ProductsProvide an easier way to view healthcare staff capacity insights while seeing a patient’s journey with HealthStream’s operational intelligence and machine learning products.
View All ProductsMitigate risk and elevate your quality of care. Improving both clinical and business outcomes starts with a smarter, more integrated approach to regulatory training, continuing education and quality management.
Learn MoreThis is the first of two blog posts based on a recent webinar discussing the new learning module created by HealthStream and the Duke School of Nursing and School of Medicine about how to optimize inter-professional frail elder care. This post is based on remarks by Dr. Eleanor McConnell, Director of the Centers for Excellence in Geriatric Nursing Education and lead faculty for the gerontology specialties in the MSN program at Duke.
Every year, millions of seniors are readmitted to hospitals within 30 days of discharge, and nearly three quarters of those readmissions are potentially avoidable. These hospitalization rates can be reduced, but only if staff engage in very specific activities to target the patients at greatest risk.
New Learning Module
My colleague Dr. Mitchell Heflin and I partnered with HealthStream and about 20 Duke Health faculty members to examine challenges related to providing services for the frail elder population. Based on our findings, HealthStream developed a unique online inter-professional learning program. Successful completion will earn a participant five CE units and an inter-professional frail elder care certificate awarded by Duke Health.
In the module, participants get to know a patient via video. To get the flavor of our teaching approach, let’s look at the following case study to determine how we can significantly improve the transition of care from the acute care setting to home.
Case Study
Meet Mr. Taylor. He has pulmonary disease with the usual comorbidities seen in an 81-year old. He lives with his wife of many years who has some mild memory loss. At the beginning of the video, we see a picture of a very vital-looking Mr. Taylor. However, when he begins detailing his current circumstances, he tells us his life has changed dramatically in the last few months.
He tells us the past six months have been difficult. He's had multiple hospitalizations to try to manage the flares of his COPD and heart failure, but things seem to be getting worse rather than better. He tells us he’s so exhausted, he wonders if he'll ever feel good again.
The video takes the learner through interactions among the various caregivers, showing barriers to candid and honest communication. Staff and family appear to be most concerned with “happy talk” about Mr. Taylor’s discharge to home, with little candor about the reality of his situation. In the heat of the moment, when everyone is so happy to hear Mr. Taylor is finally better and ready to go home, no one wants to say, “Wait a minute! What about...?”
Speak up
In Mr. Taylor’s case, there is no systematic care plan to meet his needs, no attention to providing clear communication in the next setting of care, and not enough attention to medication management. Because his caregivers did not speak up, he was readmitted 14 days later with progressively worsening shortness of breath. Sadly, this scenario occurs in nearly one in four heart failure patients discharged from the hospital.
The Impact of Frailty
One way to interrupt this cycle of re-hospitalization would be to consider Mr. Taylor’s frailty, in addition to his diagnoses of heart failure and lung disease, when making transition of care decisions. Does he tire easily? Can he climb a flight of stairs? Is he able to walk a block? Does he have more than five chronic illnesses? Has he lost more than 5% of his body weight? Based on the answers to these questions, Mr. Taylor is considered frail.
The module explains how recognizing frailty early in the hospitalization allows clinicians to address the root causes of falls, disabilities, or complications and how to better plan for post-hospital care. Had they considered his frailty, staff could have provided additional insights and directives to optimize his next phase of care and prevent re-hospitalization.
Optimizing Care
The case study walks learners through various actions to optimize Mr. Taylor’s care. During the transition process, a point person on the care team is identified who can set up a team meeting with the family to discuss their issues and concerns. Everyone is encouraged to speak openly and truthfully about the patient’s condition at the time of transition. The video calls out very specific approaches a nurse could take to voice concerns about a potential discharge.
We also thought carefully about each role: the prescriber, the CNA, the RN, the PT, and others. We parceled out the information they all needed to share, as well as the unique knowledge, roles and responsibilities of each.
For example, all roles need to understand what delirium looks like and when to alert the provider or prescriber. All should understand how they must think a bit differently about patient safety. As an individual, the prescriber must think about how medication might be an underlying cause and take specific actions to reverse this. The physical or occupational therapist may need to complete an assessment of the patient's home environment and whether there is sufficient family and social support.
Each team member plays both a specific and a shared role. When the team carries out its roles successfully they can prevent unnecessary readmissions.
Access the full Webinar here.
HealthStream’s learning management system and comprehensive suite of competency management tools empower your healthcare workforce to deliver the best patient care.
View All Learning & PerformanceHealthStream offers performance learning management solutions to help develop your healthcare staff into leaders and reduce turnover.
View All ProductsHealthStream works with healthcare organizations to create engaging and high-quality training videos for your staff and management.
View All ProductsImprove care quality and save money by making informed decisions about your healthcare facility and staff with HealthStream's reporting analytics solution.
View All ProductsHealthStream's proven methods for the improvement and overall engagement of your healthcare staff foster a positive workplace and increase retention rates.
View All ProductsThe leadership development program from HealthStream helps mold your high-potential healthcare employees into proven leaders.
View All ProductsWhen you enact HealthStream's quality compliance solutions, you can do so with the confidence your healthcare organization will meet all standards of care.
View All Quality & ComplianceFulfill compliance requirements with a variety of programs and courseware designed to address critical regulatory requirements as well as educate staff to recognize and mitigate risks.
View All ProductsBy increasing your healthcare staff's focus on quality and safety with HealthStream, they can help to reduce medical errors and readmission rates.
View All ProductsLearn about what HealthStream's healthcare policy management software and how it can help aid your organization efforts.
View All ProductsHealthStream's education helps address diversity, equity, and inclusion within your organization, as well as promoting health equity in the communities you serve.
View All ProductsHealthStream offers professional training and education on how to best optimize your reimbursement process within your healthcare organization.
View All ReimbursementTeach your healthcare staff about the revenue cycle and claim management through targeted training and video tools from HealthStream.
View All ProductsImprove the preparedness of your staff, increase survival rates, and cut costs with the advanced resuscitation training services from HealthStream.
View All ResuscitationNurture the skills of your nurses and medical staff to help mold them into effective leaders with development training from HealthStream.
View All ProductsIn all areas of resuscitation, from neonatal to elderly care, clinical deterioration is a risk that can be avoided with the help of HealthStream's training programs.
View All ProductsExpand the decision-making skills and effectiveness of your healthcare workforce with HealthStream's clinical development programs and services.
View All Clinical DevelopmentMake sure your clinicians have the support they need to provide competent care with clinical competency training and development from HealthStream.
View All ProductsThe suite of healthcare onboarding solutions available from HealthStream aids in nurse retention and improved patient outcomes.
View All ProductsGive your healthcare staff the decision support and skills training they need with the online products available from HealthStream.
View All ProductsHealthStream's solutions allow your healthcare workforce to be confident and competent with the knowledge they are upholding the highest of standards.
View All ProductsHealthStream’s learning management system and comprehensive suite of competency management tools empower your healthcare workforce to deliver the best patient care.
View All ProductsDelivers everything you need to request, gather, and validate information about a provider to create a single source of truth for downstream processes.
View All CredentialingMake sure your healthcare staff can schedule out appointments and work schedules with ease using HealthStream's line of software solutions.
View All Scheduling & Capacity ManagementNurseGrid and Keener - HealthStream's mobile apps built by nurses, for nurses - help nurses take control of their schedules, practice self-care, and build a more sustainable career.
View All ProductsTake the stress out of scheduling with real-time technology that engages nurses and healthcare workers from HealthStream.
View All ProductsProvide an easier way to view healthcare staff capacity insights while seeing a patient’s journey with HealthStream’s operational intelligence and machine learning products.
View All Products