Samaritan hospital reaches safety goals

MOSES LAKE — After considerable efforts at improvement, Samaritan Hospital reached its safety goals in March.

“Whoo-hoo, we made it,” said Chief Executive Officer Teresa Sullivan. Hospitals including Samaritan measure how they’re doing with a series of benchmarks. In the case of hospital safety the benchmarks count incidents like patient falls, pressure ulcers (also called bedsores), and child immunizations.

Measurements are made over the previous 12 months. Since last summer hospital officials have been working to decrease incidents like patient falls and bedsores. Hospital officials have started new procedures that include checking on patients every hour and extended conversations with patients and their families about what patients can and can’t do.

The hospital still has not reached its targets for child immunizations, Sullivan said. That’s due mostly to timing of immunizations for hepatitis A.

Director of Nursing Becky DeMers said hospital officials are looking at what other medical facilities are doing to meet the goal. Children are supposed to get all immunizations by the second birthday, but the second series of hepatitis A usually doesn’t occur until after the kids’ second birthday.

“I have a hard time working toward a target that’s impossible and that has no meaning,” said hospital commissioner Joe Akers. He suggested changing the standard to reflect a more realistic assessment of the goal.

DeMers said there was some confusion when hospital officials set the target, and that affected how it was established.

In other business at the last commission meeting, Sullivan said potential bidders on a project to remodel the ground floor of Samaritan Clinic have walked through the project and have been given information on its scope. The project should go out to bid soon, she said, with work expected to begin in July.

Sullivan announced that pediatrician Jill Dudek-Bross has resigned as the medical director at Samaritan Clinic, wanting to spend more time taking care of patients. Family medicine practitioner Andrea Carter, currently chief medical officer at Samaritan Hospital, will take over some of the duties at the clinic, Sullivan said.

Hospital officials are also looking for a permanent chief financial officer, Sullivan said. Interim financial officer Paul Ishizuka was offered and took another job, and hospital officials hired a new interim while they are looking for a permanent replacement, she said. Five candidates were interviewed, with the intention of bringing two people to town as finalists for the permanent job.

Cheryl Schweizer can be reached via email at education@columbiabasinherald.com.