St Petersburg HC Team 7E
December 2020
St Petersburg HC Team 7E
BayCare HomeCare
Largo
,
FL
United States
Laurel Simons, Manager
Debra Croom, PCS
Sharon Butler, TA
Amanda Jacobsen, LPN
Teri Gilsdorf, RN
Jessica Valler, LPN
Stacey Fey, RN
Valerie Larson-Franks, RN WOCN (not pictured)
Rita Olson, RN WOCN (not pictured)
Debra Croom, PCS
Sharon Butler, TA
Amanda Jacobsen, LPN
Teri Gilsdorf, RN
Jessica Valler, LPN
Stacey Fey, RN
Valerie Larson-Franks, RN WOCN (not pictured)
Rita Olson, RN WOCN (not pictured)
This team has improved the care of our wound patients by having less, but more meaningful visits to teach and train, utilizing technology to improve outcomes and care, and being more responsive to patient needs.
This team collaborated last December to plan a more efficient way to manage clients with wounds. After the initial planning and further collaboration with their administrator, the office started an E Wound Pilot team in January 2020 to better track and monitor high-risk wound clients and improve their outcomes. Going forward this began a new team.
The components to qualify admission to this team were new referrals to HHC for any referral on a client with a wound vac, any referral coming from a wound care center, any referral on a client with a stage 3-4 pressure ulcer, and any referral for an “RN to evaluate and treat “a new wound.
Clients were automatically scheduled for an RVV (virtual visits) within 48 hours of admission with ongoing RVV follow-up every 2 weeks. Virtual visits comprise of an onsite clinician in the home and a wound care specialist via iPad. The Wound Team TA scheduled the RVVs and downloads all the wound photos taken by the WTA’s to the clients’ chart. The team is comprised of three WTA’s who make the in-person home visit and connect via IPAD to do a virtual visit with the WOCN. The WOCNs provide recommendations for product changes, assess healing, s/s of infection, and then interface with the client’s physician or wound care center to obtain new orders.
Initially starting with 17 admissions in January, the Team census is now 121. We have now included any client requiring recertification with an unhealed wound, to be placed on this team for closer monitoring. The WOCN’s are performing 300 virtual visits per month now that the E Wound Team has come into existence.
Due to the growth of the team, we merged this team with our IV team to allow these RNs to serve as a case manager for the wound clients. Since many of our IV clients also have a wound, once IV therapy is discontinued, they are transitioned to the wound team and continue to be seen by the same nurses. By combining the teams, we have been able to reduce the number of nurses visiting the client for improved patient satisfaction.
The PCS has done a great job of coordinating the day-to-day management of her team and with care of the patients. She is a great resource for her team being a former wound care RN for the office. The team has received multiple compliments from clients regarding the compassionate care they provide, the professionalism displayed, the education they were given, and the confidence to perform their own wound care. The nurses provide the clients information on nutrition, off-loading, proper supportive surfaces, product benefits, and long-term management of stomas and non-healing wounds. The team engages RPT, OT, and MSW assistance as required to complement the client's healing process.
Receiving a call from a patient’s spouse let us know the wound center felt the wound was healed and no further HHC is needed. The patient’s spouse stated that “our team achieved perfection” in healing the wound and achieving all the goals we set. The spouse stated that “each nurse was remarkable and just when they thought they had” the “most wonderful nurse from BayCare, another wonderful nurse would also come to treat”. The spouse went on to say, “Each nurse who came was amazing, professional, and truly incredible” and all treated the patient with the utmost kindness and respect. They hoped that the “Wound Team would get the recognition that they deserve”.
Received another call from a patient who stated, “What a terrific experience I had.” She appreciated the compassionate, professional care that she received and was truly humbled by our care. Her surgeon was amazed at how quickly her wound healed.
This team has improved the care of our wound patients by having less, but more meaningful visits to teach and train, utilizing technology to improve outcomes and care, and being more responsive to patient needs.
The components to qualify admission to this team were new referrals to HHC for any referral on a client with a wound vac, any referral coming from a wound care center, any referral on a client with a stage 3-4 pressure ulcer, and any referral for an “RN to evaluate and treat “a new wound.
Clients were automatically scheduled for an RVV (virtual visits) within 48 hours of admission with ongoing RVV follow-up every 2 weeks. Virtual visits comprise of an onsite clinician in the home and a wound care specialist via iPad. The Wound Team TA scheduled the RVVs and downloads all the wound photos taken by the WTA’s to the clients’ chart. The team is comprised of three WTA’s who make the in-person home visit and connect via IPAD to do a virtual visit with the WOCN. The WOCNs provide recommendations for product changes, assess healing, s/s of infection, and then interface with the client’s physician or wound care center to obtain new orders.
Initially starting with 17 admissions in January, the Team census is now 121. We have now included any client requiring recertification with an unhealed wound, to be placed on this team for closer monitoring. The WOCN’s are performing 300 virtual visits per month now that the E Wound Team has come into existence.
Due to the growth of the team, we merged this team with our IV team to allow these RNs to serve as a case manager for the wound clients. Since many of our IV clients also have a wound, once IV therapy is discontinued, they are transitioned to the wound team and continue to be seen by the same nurses. By combining the teams, we have been able to reduce the number of nurses visiting the client for improved patient satisfaction.
The PCS has done a great job of coordinating the day-to-day management of her team and with care of the patients. She is a great resource for her team being a former wound care RN for the office. The team has received multiple compliments from clients regarding the compassionate care they provide, the professionalism displayed, the education they were given, and the confidence to perform their own wound care. The nurses provide the clients information on nutrition, off-loading, proper supportive surfaces, product benefits, and long-term management of stomas and non-healing wounds. The team engages RPT, OT, and MSW assistance as required to complement the client's healing process.
Receiving a call from a patient’s spouse let us know the wound center felt the wound was healed and no further HHC is needed. The patient’s spouse stated that “our team achieved perfection” in healing the wound and achieving all the goals we set. The spouse stated that “each nurse was remarkable and just when they thought they had” the “most wonderful nurse from BayCare, another wonderful nurse would also come to treat”. The spouse went on to say, “Each nurse who came was amazing, professional, and truly incredible” and all treated the patient with the utmost kindness and respect. They hoped that the “Wound Team would get the recognition that they deserve”.
Received another call from a patient who stated, “What a terrific experience I had.” She appreciated the compassionate, professional care that she received and was truly humbled by our care. Her surgeon was amazed at how quickly her wound healed.
This team has improved the care of our wound patients by having less, but more meaningful visits to teach and train, utilizing technology to improve outcomes and care, and being more responsive to patient needs.