Hospital-acquired Pressure Ulcers Rates Research Articles

The effect of nurse staffing on patient-safety outcomes: A cross-sectional survey.

To analyse the effect of nurse staffing (number of nurses and staff structure) on patient-safety outcomes in hospitals in China. The number of nurses has been shown to have a significant effect on patient-safety outcomes, but the structure of the nursing staff has received little attention. A cross-sectional survey was conducted in 211 units of 13 hospitals. Data on four patient-safety outcomes and numerical and structural indices of nurse staffing were collected from seven types of hospital units. Nurse staffing had inconsistent effects on units' rates of fall and hospital-acquired pressure ulcers. The nurse-to-patient ratio and rate of nurses with work experience ≤5years predicted fall rates, and rate of hospital-acquired pressure ulcers was positively correlated to the level of nurse staffing (low nurse-to-patient ratio and high bed-to-nurse number). The number and structure of nurses are both important to patient safety, and the rate of nurses with work experience ≤5years might be a protective factor against adverse events. Patient outcomes correlated with the number and structure of the nursing staff. Methods to balance the structure of nursing staff might be a topic worthy of examination in future studies.

Medical device-related pressure ulcer (MDRPU) in acute care hospitals and its perceived importance and prevention performance by clinical nurses.

The incidence rate of patients developing pressure ulcers associated with medical device use is underreported in Korea. This study aims to determine clinical nurses' perceived importance and performance towards medical device-related pressure injury prevention. A total of 620 nurses from seven hospitals attending continuing education programmes in Korea responded to self-administered questionnaires. Data were collected from March to December 2017 on a 4-point-Likert scale on nurses' perceived importance and performance for prevention of medical device-related pressure ulcer (MDRPU). Secondary data analysis was performed through reported pressure injury incidence, and questionnaire data were analysed using descriptive statistics, t-test, and anova. The overall rates of hospital-acquired pressure ulcers and MDRPU were 16.9% and 0.8%, respectively. The proportion of MDRPU was 5.02%. Its perceived importance (3.56 ± 0.48) was also higher than prevention performance (3.13 ± 0.90) among nurses. Education level and participation in pressure injury management training was found to enhance prevention performance by nurses. Therefore, informational and educational programmes based on clinical practice are necessary for clinical nurses to focus on perceived importance and performance towards prevention of medical device-related pressure injury and pressure ulcer care.

Inter- and intra-disciplinary collaboration and patient safety outcomes in U.S. acute care hospital units: A cross-sectional study

BackgroundCollaboration among healthcare providers has been considered a promising strategy for improving care quality and patient outcomes. Despite mounting evidence demonstrating the impact of collaboration on outcomes of healthcare providers, there is little empirical evidence on the relationship between collaboration and patient safety outcomes, particularly at the patient care unit level. ObjectivesThe purpose of this study is to identify the extent to which interdisciplinary collaboration between nurses and physicians and intradisciplinary collaboration among nurses on patient care units are associated with patient safety outcomes. MethodsThis is a cross-sectional study using nurse survey data and patient safety indicators data from U.S. acute care hospital units. Collaboration at the unit level was measured by two 6-item scales: nurse-nurse interaction scale and nurse-physician interaction scale. Patient outcome measures included hospital-acquired pressure ulcers (HAPUs) and patient falls. The unit of analysis was the patient care unit, and the final sample included 900 units of 5 adult unit types in 160 hospitals in the U.S. Multilevel logistic and Poisson regressions were used to estimate the relationship between collaboration and patient outcomes. All models were controlled for hospital and unit characteristics, and clustering of units within hospitals was considered. ResultsOn average, units had 26 patients with HAPUs per 1000 patients and 3 patient falls per 1000 patient days. Critical care units had the highest HAPU rate (50/1000 patients) and the lowest fall rate (1/1000 patient days). A one-unit increase in the nurse-nurse interaction scale score led to 31% decrease in the odds of having a HAPU (OR, 0.69; 95% CI, 0.56–0.82) and 8% lower patient fall rate (IRR, 0.92; 95% CI, 0.87–0.98) on a nursing unit. A one-unit increase in the nurse-physician interaction scale score was associated with 19% decrease in the odds of having a HAPU (OR, 0.81; 95% CI, 0.68–0.97) and 13% lower fall rates (IRR, 0.87; 95% CI, 0.82–0.93) on a unit. ConclusionsBoth nurse-physician collaboration and nurse-nurse collaboration were significantly associated with patient safety outcomes. Findings from this study suggest that improving collaboration among healthcare providers should be considered as an important strategy for promoting patient safety and both interdisciplinary and intradisciplinary collaboration are critical for achieving better patient outcomes.

A Comprehensive Program to Reduce Rates of Hospital-Acquired Pressure Ulcers in a System of Community Hospitals.

The prevention of hospital-acquired pressure ulcers (PrUs) has significant consequences for patient outcomes and the cost of care. Providers are challenged with evaluating available evidence and best practices, then implementing programs and motivating change in various facility environments. In a large system of community hospitals, the Reducing Hospital Acquired-PrUs Program was developed to provide a toolkit of best practices, timely and appropriate data for focusing efforts, and continuous implementation support. Baseline data on PrU rates helped focus efforts on the most vulnerable patients and care situations. Facilities were empowered to use and adapt available resources to meet local needs and to share best practices for implementation across the system. Outcomes were measured by the rate of hospital-acquired PrUs, as gathered from patient discharge records. The rate of hospital-acquired stage III and IV PrUs decreased 66.3% between 2011 and 2013. Of the 149 participating facilities, 40 (27%) had zero hospital-acquired stage III and IV PrUs and 77 (52%) had a reduction in their PrU rate. Rates of all PrUs documented as present on admission did not change during this period. A comparison of different strategies used by the most successful facilities illustrated the necessity of facility-level flexibility and recognition of local workflows and patient demographics. Driven by the combination of a repository of evidence-based tools and best practices, readily available data on PrU rates, and local flexibility with processes, the Reducing Hospital Acquired-PrUs Program represents the successful operationalization of improvement in a wide variety of facilities.

Evaluation of the Present-on-Admission Indicator among Hospitalized Fee-for-Service Medicare Patients with a Pressure Ulcer Diagnosis: Coding Patterns and Impact on Hospital-Acquired Pressure Ulcer Rates.

To evaluate national present-on-admission (POA) reporting for hospital-acquired pressure ulcers (HAPUs) and examine the impact of quality measure exclusion criteria on HAPU rates. Medicare inpatient, outpatient, and nursing facility data as well as independent provider claims (2010-2011). Retrospective cross-sectional study. We evaluated acute inpatient hospital admissions among Medicare fee-for-service (FFS) beneficiaries in 2011. Admissions were categorized as follows: (1) no pressure ulcer diagnosis, (2) new pressure ulcer diagnosis, and (3) previously documented pressure ulcer diagnosis. HAPU rates were calculated by varying patient exclusion criteria. Among admissions with a pressure ulcer diagnosis, we observed a large discrepancy in the proportion of admissions with a HAPU based on hospital-reported POA data (5.2 percent) and the proportion with a new pressure ulcer diagnosis based on patient history in billing claims (49.7 percent). Applying quality measure exclusion criteria resulted in removal of 91.2 percent of admissions with a pressure injury diagnosis from HAPU rate calculations. As payers and health care organizations expand the use of quality measures, it is important to consider how the measures are implemented, coding revisions to improve measure validity, and the impact of patient exclusion criteria on provider performance evaluation.

A safety culture training program enhanced the perceptions of patient safety culture of nurse managers.

Positive perceptions of patient safety culture are associated with lower rates of adverse events, but they have not been widely established in many health care organizations. The purpose of this study is to examine the impacts of a safety culture training program (SCTP) on enhancing the perceptions of patient safety in nurse managers. This was a quasi-experimental design. 83 nurse managers were recruited from five randomly selected 2nd level hospitals. Sixty-seven nurse managers received training under the educational SCTP. The Hospital Survey on Patient Safety Culture (HSPSC) and Chinese Safety Attitudes Questionnaire (C-SAQ) were administered just before and six months after the educational program. The data of hospital-acquired pressure ulcers, patient falls, and unplanned extubations were collected. The total positive scores of HSPSC were significantly improved and four dimensions of C-SAQ significantly increased six months after SCTP. The rate of patient falls and rate of hospital-acquired pressure ulcers decreased significantly six months post SCTP. In conclusion, nurse manager participation in a SCTP can enhance the perceptions of patient safety and reduce the rates of adverse events. More rigorous trials with larger numbers of participants and a control group are needed to strengthen the conclusions.

Five-Layered Soft Silicone Foam Dressing to Prevent Pressure Ulcers in the Intensive Care Unit.

In critically ill patients, prevention of pressure ulcers is a challenge because of the high risk for multiple comorbid conditions, immobility, hemodynamic instability, and increased use of medical devices. To compare the difference in incidence rates of hospital-acquired pressure ulcers (HAPUs) in critically ill patients between those treated with usual preventive care and a 5-layered soft silicone foam dressing versus a control group receiving usual care. Secondary goals were to examine risk factors for HAPUs in critically ill patients and to explicate cost savings related to prevention of pressure ulcers. A prospective, randomized controlled trial in the intensive care units at a 569-bed, level II trauma hospital. All 366 participants received standard pressure ulcer prevention; 184 were randomized to have a 5-layered soft silicone foam dressing applied to the sacrum (intervention group) and 182 to receive usual care (control group). The incidence rate of HAPUs was significantly less in patients treated with the foam dressing than in the control group (0.7% vs 5.9%, P = .01). Time to injury survival analysis (Cox proportional hazard models) revealed the intervention group had 88% reduced risk of HAPU development (hazard ratio, 0.12 [95% CI, 0.02-0.98], P = .048). Use of a soft silicone foam dressing combined with preventive care yielded a statistically and clinically significant benefit in reducing the incidence rate and severity of HAPUs in intensive care patients. This novel, cost-effective method can reduce HAPU incidence in critically ill patients.

Virtual Breakthrough Series, Part 1: Preventing Catheter-Associated Urinary Tract Infection and Hospital-Acquired Pressure Ulcers in the Veterans Health Administration

In 2014 the Veterans Health Administration (VHA) of the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) implemented a Virtual Breakthrough Series (VBTS) collaborative to help VHA facilities prevent hospital-acquired conditions: catheter-associated urinary tract infection (CAUTI) and hospital-acquired pressure ulcers (HAPUs). During the prework phase, participating facilities assembled a multidisciplinary team, assessed their current system for CAUTI or HAPU prevention, and examined baseline data to set improvement aims. The action phase consisted of educational conference calls, coaching, and monthly team reports. Learning was conducted via phone, web-based options, and e-mail. The CAUTI bundle focused on four key principles: (1) avoidance of indwelling urinary catheters, (2) proper insertion technique, (3) proper catheter maintenance, and (4) timely removal of the indwelling catheter. The HAPU bundle focused on assessment and inspection, pressure-relieving surfaces, turning and repositioning, incontinence management, and nutrition/hydration assessment and intervention. For the 18 participating units, the mean aggregated CAUTI rate decreased from 2.37 during the prework phase to 1.06 per 1,000 catheter-days during the action (implementation) phase (p < 0.001); the rate did not change for CAUTI nonparticipating sites. HAPU data were available only for 21 of the 31 participating units, whose mean aggregated HAPU rate decreased from 1.80 to 0.99 from prework to continuous improvement (p < 0.001). Staff education and documentation improvement were the most frequently implemented changes. This project helped improve CAUTI and HAPU rates in the VHA and presents a promising model for implementing a virtual model for improvement.

Reliability of Pressure Ulcer Rates: How Precisely Can We Differentiate Among Hospital Units, and Does the Standard Signal-Noise Reliability Measure Reflect This Precision?

Hospital performance reports often include rankings of unit pressure ulcer rates. Differentiating among units on the basis of quality requires reliable measurement. Our objectives were to describe and apply methods for assessing reliability of hospital‐acquired pressure ulcer rates and evaluate a standard signal‐noise reliability measure as an indicator of precision of differentiation among units. Quarterly pressure ulcer data from 8,199 critical care, step‐down, medical, surgical, and medical‐surgical nursing units from 1,299 US hospitals were analyzed. Using beta‐binomial models, we estimated between‐unit variability (signal) and within‐unit variability (noise) in annual unit pressure ulcer rates. Signal‐noise reliability was computed as the ratio of between‐unit variability to the total of between‐ and within‐unit variability. To assess precision of differentiation among units based on ranked pressure ulcer rates, we simulated data to estimate the probabilities of a unit's observed pressure ulcer rate rank in a given sample falling within five and ten percentiles of its true rank, and the probabilities of units with ulcer rates in the highest quartile and highest decile being identified as such. We assessed the signal‐noise measure as an indicator of differentiation precision by computing its correlations with these probabilities. Pressure ulcer rates based on a single year of quarterly or weekly prevalence surveys were too susceptible to noise to allow for precise differentiation among units, and signal‐noise reliability was a poor indicator of precision of differentiation. To ensure precise differentiation on the basis of true differences, alternative methods of assessing reliability should be applied to measures purported to differentiate among providers or units based on quality. © 2016 The Authors. Research in Nursing & Health published by Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Are Evidence-based Practices Associated With Effective Prevention of Hospital-acquired Pressure Ulcers in US Academic Medical Centers?

In 2008, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) established nonpayment policies resulting from costliness of hospital-acquired pressure ulcers (HAPUs) to hospitals. This prompted hospitals to adopt quality improvement (QI) interventions that increase use of evidence-based practices (EBPs) for HAPU prevention. To evaluate the longitudinal impact of CMS policy and QI adoption on HAPU rates. We characterized longitudinal adoption of 25 QI interventions that support EBPs through hospital leadership, staff, information technology, and performance and improvement. Quarterly counts of HAPU incidence and inpatient characteristics were collected from 55 University HealthSystem Consortium hospitals between 2007 and 2012. Mixed-effects regression models tested the longitudinal association of CMS policy, HAPU coding, and QI on HAPU rates. The models assumed level-2 random intercepts and random effects for CMS policy and EBP implementation to account for between-hospital variability in HAPU incidence. Controlling for all 25 QI interventions, specific updates to EBPs for HAPU prevention had a significant, though modest reduction on HAPU rates (-1.86 cases/quarter; P=0.002) and the effect of CMS nonpayment policy on HAPU prevention was much greater (-11.32 cases/quarter; P<0.001). HAPU rates were significantly lower after changes in CMS reimbursement. Reductions are associated with hospital-wide implementation of EBPs for HAPU prevention. Given that administrative data were used, it remains unknown whether these improvements were due to changes in coding or improved quality of care.

A Clinical Nurse Specialist-Led Interprofessional Quality Improvement Project to Reduce Hospital-Acquired Pressure Ulcers.

The purpose of this clinical nurse specialist-led interprofessional quality improvement project was to reduce hospital-acquired pressure ulcers (HAPUs) using evidence-based practice. Hospital-acquired pressure ulcers (PUs) have been linked to morbidity, poor quality of life, and increasing costs. Pressure ulcer prevention and management remain a challenge for interprofessional teams in acute care settings. Hospital-acquired PU rate is a critical nursing quality indicator for healthcare organizations and ties directly with Mount Sinai Hospital's (MSH's) mission and vision, which mandates providing the highest quality care to patients and families. This quality improvement project, guided by the Donabedian model, was based on the Registered Nurses' Association of Ontario Best Practice Guideline Risk Assessment & Prevention of Pressure Ulcers. A working group was established to promote evidence-based practice for PU prevention. Initiatives such as documentation standardization, development of staff education and patient and family educational resources, initiation of a hospital-wide inventory for support surfaces, and procurement of equipment were implemented to improve PU prevention and management across the organization. An 80% decrease in HAPUs has been achieved since the implementation of best practices by the Best Practice Guideline Pressure Ulcer working group. The implementation of PU prevention strategies led to a reduction in HAPU rates. The working group will continue to work on building interprofessional awareness and collaboration in order to prevent HAPUs and promote an organizational culture that supports staff development, teamwork and communication. This quality improvement project is a successful example of an interprofessional clinical nurse specialist-led initiative that impacts patient/family and organization outcomes through the identification and implementation of evidence-based nursing practice.

The VCU Pressure Ulcer Summit-Developing Centers of Pressure Ulcer Prevention Excellence: A Framework for Sustainability.

Hospital-acquired pressure ulcer occurrences have declined over the past decade as reimbursement policies have changed, evidence-based practice guidelines have been implemented, and quality improvement initiatives have been launched. However, the 2006-2008 Institute for Healthcare Improvement goal of zero pressure ulcers remains difficult to achieve and even more challenging to sustain. Magnet hospitals tend to have lower hospital-acquired pressure ulcer rates than non-Magnet hospitals, yet many non-Magnet hospitals also have robust pressure ulcer prevention programs. Successful programs share commonalities in structure, processes, and outcomes. A national summit of 55 pressure ulcer experts was convened at the Virginia Commonwealth University Medical Center in March 2014. The group was divided into 3 focus groups; each was assigned a task to develop a framework describing components of a proposed Magnet-designated Center of Pressure Ulcer Prevention Excellence. Systematic literature reviews, analysis of exemplars, and nominal group process techniques were used to create the framework. This article presents a framework describing the proposed Magnet-designated Centers of Pressure Ulcer Prevention Excellence. Critical attributes of Centers of Excellence are identified and organized according to the 4 domains of the ANCC model for the Magnet Recognition Program: transformational leadership; structural empowerment; exemplary professional practice; and new knowledge innovation and improvements. The structures, processes, and outcome measures necessary to become a proposed Center of Pressure Ulcer Prevention Excellence are discussed.

Improving Outcomes by Implementing a Pressure Ulcer Prevention Program (PUPP): Going beyond the Basics.

A multidisciplinary process improvement program was initiated at the University of Miami Hospital (UMH) in 2009 to identify the prevalence of hospital-acquired pressure ulcers (HAPU) at the institution and to implement interventions to reduce the incidence of HAPU. This deliberate and thoughtful committee-driven process evaluated care, monitored results, and designed evidence-based strategic initiatives to manage and reduce the rate of HAPU. As a result all inpatient beds were replaced with support surfaces, updated care delivery protocols were created, and monitored, turning schedules were addressed, and a wound, ostomy, and continence (WOC) nurse and support staff were hired. These initial interventions resulted in a decrease in the prevalence of HAPU at UMH from 11.7% of stage II to IV ulcers in the second quarter, 2009 to 2.1% the third quarter. The rate remained at or near the 2009 UMH benchmark of 3.1% until the first quarter of 2012 when the rate rose to 4.1%. At that time new skin products were introduced into practice and continuing re-education was provided. The rate of HAPU dropped to 2.76% by the second quarter of 2012 and has remained steadily low at 1%–2% for nine consecutive quarters.

Under Pressure: Financial Effect of the Hospital-Acquired Conditions Initiative-A Statewide Analysis of Pressure Ulcer Development and Payment.

To assess the financial effect of the 2008 Hospital-Acquired Conditions Initiative (HACI) pressure ulcer payment changes on Medicare, other payers, and hospitals. Retrospective before-and-after study of all-payer statewide administrative data for more than 2.4 million annual adult discharges in 2007 and 2009 using the Healthcare Cost and Utilization Project State Inpatient Datasets for California. How often and by how much the 2008 payment changes for pressure ulcers affected hospital payment was assessed. Nonfederal acute care California hospitals (N = 311). Adults discharged from acute-care hospitals. Pressure ulcer rates and hospital payment changes. Hospital-acquired pressure ulcer rates were low in 2007 (0.28%) and 2009 (0.27%); present-on-admission pressure ulcer rates increased from 2.3% in 2007 to 3.0% in 2009. According to clinical stage of pressure ulcer (available in 2009), hospital-acquired Stage III and IV ulcers occurred in 603 discharges (0.02%); 60,244 discharges (2.42%) contained other pressure ulcer diagnoses. Payment removal for Stage III and IV hospital-acquired ulcers reduced payment in 75 (0.003%) discharges, for a statewide payment decrease of $310,444 (0.001%) for all payers and $199,238 (0.001%) for Medicare. For all other pressure ulcers, the Hospital-Acquired Conditions Initiative reduced hospital payment in 20,246 (0.81%) cases (including 18,953 cases with present-on-admission ulcers), reducing statewide payment by $62,538,586 (0.21%) for all payers and $47,237,984 (0.32%) for Medicare. The total financial effect of the 2008 payment changes for pressure ulcers was negligible. Most payment decreases occurred by removal of comorbidity payments for present-on-admission pressure ulcers other than Stages III and IV. The removal of payment for hospital-acquired Stage III and IV ulcers by implementation of the HACI policy was 1/200th that of the removal of payment for other types of pressure ulcers that occurred in implementation of the Hospital-Acquired Conditions Initiative.

Medical device-related hospital-acquired pressure ulcers: development of an evidence-based position statement.

Hospital-acquired pressure ulcers (HAPUs) are a problem in the acute care setting causing pain, loss of function, infection, extended hospital stay, and increased costs. In spite of best practice strategies, occurrences of pressure ulcers continue. Many of these HAPUs are related to a medical device. Correct assessment and reporting of device-related HAPUs were identified as an important issue in our organization. Following the Iowa Model for Evidence-Based Practice to Promote Quality Care, a task force was created, a thorough review of current evidence and clinical practice recommendations was performed, and a definition for medical device-related HAPU and an evidence-based position statement were developed. Content of the statement was reviewed by experts and appropriate revisions were made. This position statement provides guidance and structure to accurately identify and report device-related HAPU across our 18 healthcare facilities. Through the intentional focus on pressure ulcer prevention and evidence-based practice in our organization and the use of this position statement, identification and reporting of device-related HAPUs have improved with a decrease in overall HAPU rates of 33% from 2011 and 2012. This article describes the development and implementation of this device-related HAPU position statement within our organization.

The Relationship Between Direct-Care RN Specialty Certification and Surgical Patient Outcomes

Specialty certification enhances patient safety in health care by validating that practice is consistent with standards of excellence. The purpose of this research was to explore the relationship between direct-care, specialty-certified nurses employed in perioperative units, surgical intensive care units (SICUs), and surgical units and nursing-sensitive patient outcomes in SICUs and surgical units. Lower rates of central-line–associated bloodstream infections in SICUs were significantly associated with higher rates of CPAN (certified postanesthesia nurse) (β = -0.09, P = .05) and CNOR/CRNFA (certified nurse operating room/certified RN first assistant) (β = -0.17, P = .00) certifications in perioperative units. Unexpectedly, higher rates of CNOR/CRNFA certification in perioperative units were associated with higher rates of hospital-acquired pressure ulcers (β = 0.08, P = .03) and unit-acquired pressure ulcers (β = 0.13, P = .00), possibly because of a higher risk of pressure ulcers in the patient population. Additional research is needed to clarify this relationship. Our findings lend credence to perioperative, SICU, and surgical nurses participating in lifelong learning and continuous professional development, including achievement of specialty certification.

Reducing Hospital-Acquired Pressure Ulcers

A quality improvement initiative across 21 hospitals incorporated a multidisciplinary approach, breakthrough collaborative methods, evidence-based improvement methods and care guidelines, front-line rapid improvement cycles, consistent process-of-care documentation, and real-time incidence data. Statistically significant decreases in both all-stage and stages III, IV, and unstageable hospital-acquired pressure ulcers rates have been sustained for 5 years.

Reporting Rates of Hospital-Acquired Pressure Ulcers: Well Intentioned but Inaccurate

Since 2011, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) have used administrative data (based on hospital coding) to report hospital-acquired

Hospital report cards for hospital-acquired pressure ulcers: how good are the grades?

Value-based purchasing programs use administrative data to compare hospitals by rates of hospital-acquired pressure ulcers (HAPUs) for public reporting and financial penalties. However, validation of these data is lacking. To assess the validity of the administrative data used to generate HAPU rates by comparing the rates generated from these data with those generated from surveillance data. Retrospective analysis of 2 million all-payer administrative records from 448 California hospitals and quarterly hospitalwide surveillance data from 213 hospitals from the Collaborative Alliance for Nursing Outcomes (as publicly reported on the CalHospitalCompare Web site). 196 acute care hospitals with at least 6 months of available administrative and surveillance data. Nonobstetric adults discharged in 2009. Hospital-specific HAPU rates were computed as the percentage of discharged adults (from administrative data) or examined adults (from surveillance data) with at least 1 stage II or greater HAPU (HAPU2+). Categorization of hospital performance based on administrative data was compared with the grade assigned when surveillance data were used. When administrative data were used, the mean hospital-specific HAPU2+ rate was 0.15% (95% CI, 0.13% to 0.17%); when surveillance data were used, the rate was 2.0% (CI, 1.8% to 2.2%). Among the 49 hospitals with HAPU2+ rates in the highest (worst) quartile from administrative data, use of the surveillance data set resulted in performance grades of "superior" for 3 of these hospitals, "above average" for 14, "average" for 15, and "below average" for 17. Data are from 1 state and 1 year. Hospital performance scores generated from HAPU2+ rates varied considerably according to whether administrative or surveillance data were used, suggesting that administrative data may not be appropriate for comparing hospitals. Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality.

Pressure Ulcers and Prevention Among Acute Care Hospitals in the United States

Most pressure ulcers can be prevented with evidence-based practice. Many studies describe the implementation of a pressure ulcer prevention program but few report the effect on outcomes across acute care facilities. Data on hospital-acquired pressure ulcers and prevention from the National Database of Nursing Quality Indicators 2010 Pressure Ulcer Surveys were linked to hospital characteristics and nurse staffing measures within the data set. The sample consisted of 1,419 hospitals from across the United States and 710,626 patients who had been surveyed for pressure ulcers in adult critical care, step-down, medical, surgical, and medical/surgical units. Hierarchical logistic regression analysis was performed to identify study variables associated with hospital-acquired pressure ulcers among patients at risk for these ulcers. The rate of hospital-acquired pressure ulcers was 3.6% across all surveyed patients and 7.9% among those at risk. Patients who received a skin and pressure ulcer risk assessment on admission were less likely to develop a pressure ulcer. Additional study variables associated with lower hospital-acquired pressure ulcer rates included a recent reassessment of pressure ulcer risk, higher Braden Scale scores, a recent skin assessment, routine repositioning, and Magnet or Magnet-applicant designation. Variables associated with a higher likelihood of hospital-acquired pressure ulcers included nutritional support, moisture management, larger hospital size, and academic medical center status. Results provide empirical support for pressure ulcer prevention guideline recommendations on skin assessment, pressure ulcer risk assessment, and routine repositioning, but the 7.9% rate of hospital-acquired pressure ulcers among at-risk patients suggests room for improvement in pressure ulcer prevention practice.