Open4Results – December 2017

The Health Quality & Safety Commission has released the latest update of its Open4Results report.

Open4Results highlights harm prevented and money saved through the improvements made by health services in areas where the Commission has a focus. These successes are the result of the work and commitment of the whole sector to improve patient safety and save lives.

In this update:

• The rate of patients falling and breaking their hip continues to reduce. Since June 2013, there have been 110 fewer falls resulting in a broken hip, saving an estimated $5.2 million.
• Since January 2013, 323 deep vein thrombosis / pulmonary embolism (DVT/PE) or blood clots have been avoided, a $6.7 million saving. DVT/PE can cause serious damage to the lungs and other organs.
• Since August 2015, there has been a reduction in surgical site infections related to hip and knee replacements, from 1.2 percent of operations to 0.9 percent of operations, saving up to $2 million between August 2015 and June 2017.
• Since January 2013, there have been fewer older people admitted to hospital as an emergency more than once – 138,000 fewer bed-days in total. This is $106 million of care which can be redirected to patients who otherwise couldn’t have been treated. When older people are repeatedly admitted to hospital it can indicate they are not receiving the right range of care and care that is well integrated around their individual needs. This result reflects the interventions put in place by many district health boards to reduce these admissions.
• Since 2010, there have been 695 fewer deaths of children aged between 28 days and 24 years. Much of this reduction has been driven by work around sudden unexpected death in infancy (SUDI), and fewer road traffic crashes involving young people.
• Since 2010, there have been 135 fewer stillborn babies. There are a number of reasons for this reduction, including improved care and lower smoking rates.

Open4Results is a six-monthly report on the harm prevented, and money saved, in areas the Health Quality & Safety Commission focuses on or raises awareness about.