The New York State Department of Health recently released a report that showed Glen Cove Hospital maintained the lowest central-line associated blood stream infection rate in its medical-surgical intensive care units among 113 non-major teaching hospitals in the state.

By: Tony Tedeschi

Glen Cove Hospital maintained the lowest central-line associated blood stream infection rate (CLABS) in its medical-surgical intensive care units (ICU) among 113 non-major teaching hospitals in the state, according to a report released by the New York State Department of Health.

While the report includes data from 2009, the most recent year for which statistics are available, the hospital has maintained its perfect record, last month completing 1,000 days – or more than two years – with a zero ICU central-line infection rate.

"This is a tremendous achievement," said Dennis Connors, the hospital's executive director. "I applaud our dedicated staff members who have made Glen Cove Hospital a safer environment for our patients every day. We are celebrating this milestone but we are firmly focused on continuing our diligence to prevent central-line infections in the ICU."

Central-line infections are among the most serious events that can occur in hospitals each year. This type of bloodstream infection is introduced through large intravenous (IV) catheters that deliver nutrition, medications and fluids to the body of critical care patients.

This latest report follows a study earlier this year, by Consumer Reports, which analyzed data from 926 hospitals in 43 states. It, too, rated Glen Cove Hospital among the nation's best-performing facilities for preventing central-line infections in intensive care units.

"The superior results at Glen Cove are the result of a collaborative effort between nursing, infection control and physician staff," said Brian Pinard, MD, chief of surgery. "These clinicians have consistently put their motivation and caring into action to reduce the risk of infection while caring for patients."

The culture of patient safety in hospitals has changed dramatically in the last several years, according to Dr. Pinard.  He explained that, prior to 2005, there was a common misconception in healthcare that some hospital infections were unavoidable and beyond anyone's control. He said the path to the perfect record began with the hospital's embracing the Institute for Healthcare Improvement's 100,000 Lives Campaign and its emphasis on preventing medical errors and infections.

The hospital's initiatives included communication through daily inter-professional rounds, education, and monitoring of various programs, among them hand hygiene, sterile practices and the use of universal safety protocols. This led to excellent outcomes, improved patient safety, decreased length of stay, a decrease in mortality and cost avoidance, according to Dr. Pinard.

"It is the enormous teamwork and seamless cooperation among ICU team members that have helped us achieve the long-standing, significant results we are seeing," Dr. Pinard said. "It is not just physicians who are extremely competitive. So, too, is the nursing staff. In addition, if you are fortunate enough to have an experienced ICU senior nursing staff, who knows what the patient issues are and how to fix them, it certainly helps. Leadership from a strong nursing staff works wonders."

Glen Cove Hospital is part of the North Shore-LIJ Health System.