Wound Care and Walking Rounds Quality Improved Projects Rank Top in ICan Contest

Posted on November 2, 2023 by Julie Apold

Two Silver Bay Veterans Home teams ranked second and third in LeadingAge Minnesota’s 2023 ICan Quality Improve Contest.

Several member organizations were recently recognized for their commitment to quality as part of the first annual ICan Quality Improvement Contest.

About the ICan Quality Improvement Contest

The ICan Quality Improvement Contest is a new program within LeadingAge Minnesota’s quality program created to provide quality improvement tools and strategies for staff to think about opportunities for improvement in a solution-focused way. Staff help lead the improvement projects that are implemented over several months.

ICan teams presented their completed projects, judged by a three-member panel.

Wound Care Supply Standardization Project

Ranking second in the contest, the “Wound Care Supply Standardization” team focused on an identified issue of staff having difficulty finding wound care supplies when needed, resulting in wasted supplies and staff time. The wound care supplies were cleaned from the four med rooms separately and reorganized with staff setting par levels to maintain consistency.

Staff satisfaction surveys indicated that floor staff liked the new process, and the project achieved a significant cost savings of approximately $6000 for just one type of wound dressing. The staff-led project also resulted in staff validation, inclusion, and improved staff morale. 

Find additional details of their project and lessons learned here here.

Wound Care Supply Standardization Team Members: Lollie Cooper, LPN; Dawn Midbrod, LPN; Lu Tedrick, RN Sr./WCC; Kim Osmundson, RNS/WCC; Brenda Hagen, RNS. Not pictured: Rennae Houle-Burns, DON; Kathryn Rosha, ADON; Tina Lundberg, CSAS; Jennifer Fisher, RN Sr.

Walking Rounds Project

The “Walking Rounds” team project took third place in the contest for their communication improvement project, which led to clearer communication between care partners about resident-centered care.

Human Service Technicians (HSTs) now receive reports at the beginning of the shift, then walk to focused residents with the HST partner from the previous shift to monitor quality measures established by their project.

The team has tracked performance and has seen increased communication between HST care partners, above-standard resident care, decreased shift-to-shift incomplete tasks, and better communication with other nursing staff. 

Find additional details of their project and lessons learned here.

Walking Rounds Team members: Jennifer Fisher, RN, Sr. and Natasha Hollaway, HST/TMA/VCS. Not pictured: Alisha Harkness HST/TMA/ VCS

Watch for information in early 2024, or contact Julie Apold, Vice President of Quality & Performance Excellence, to learn how you can get a team involved in the 2024 ICan Quality Improvement Contest.