Toolkits Assist Hospitals in Development of Initiatives to Improve Care of Older Adults

NYUCN's NICHE Adds Organizational Strategy Resources
Toolkits Assist Hospitals in Development of Initiatives to Improve Care of Older Adults

NICHE Contact: Barbara Bricoli | 212-992-9753 | barbara.bricoli@nyu.edu

Toolkits Assist Hospitals in Development of Initiatives to Improve Care of Older Adults

NICHE (Nurses Improving Care for Healthsystem Elders) announces the expansion of its portfolio of Organizational Strategies, a series of web-based toolkits designed to supply support for the NICHE programs in place at NICHE member hospitals. These toolkits provide comprehensive guidance in the development of key initiatives within hospital organizations that ensure continuing improvement in the care of older adults and sustained geriatric program growth. The Organizational Strategies can be accessed by NICHE member hospitals at http://nicheprogram.org/courses/127.

The Organizational Strategies are authored by geriatric specialist nursing staff and other healthcare professionals at NICHE member hospitals. The line-up now includes the following tool kits:

• Patient Family Advisory Councils – provides guidance in the development of a council concept based on a NICHE hospital’s experiences.

• Certification – a guide to promoting gerontological nursing certification in a health system.

• Vaccines – provides guidance so that hospitals and other organizations can develop influenza and pneumonia vaccine policies that identify, inform and educate at-risk populations.

• Medication Reconciliation – details processes for transitions in care that help reduce medication errors and reconciliation failures.

• Behavioral Health Rapid Response – describes a team of healthcare professionals who respond to patients experiencing behavioral changes or mental health crises.

• Medications – discusses the appropriateness of prescribing criteria in older adults.

The Patient Family Advisory Councils tool kit, one of the more recent Organizational Strategy additions, discusses the development by St. Mary Mercy Hospital, Livonia, Michigan, of a Patient Family Advisory Council to help guide their work and ensure that the patient and family voice is heard. The hospital’s "Roadmap to Caregiver Involvement" provides guidance for other hospitals that wish to introduce and implement the council concept and help increase patient/caregiver satisfaction levels.

About NICHE

NICHE (Nurses Improving Care for Healthsystem Elders) is an international program designed to help hospitals improve the care of older adults. The vision of NICHE is for all patients 65-and-over to be given sensitive and exemplary care. The mission of NICHE is to provide principles and tools to stimulate a change in the culture of healthcare facilities to achieve patient-centered care for older adults. NICHE, based at NYU College of Nursing, consist of over 350 hospitals and healthcare facilities throughout North America. For more information visit www.nicheprogram.org.

Follow us on Twitter @NICHEProgram

 

Press Contact

Christopher James
Christopher James
(212) 998-6876