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About this Measure
Ventilator-Associated Pneumonia is defined as pneumonia acquired while in the hospital as a result of a patient being on a ventilator machine. A ventilator machine supports the patient's breathing by moving air down a tube that is placed in the patient's windpipe.
A lower score is better for this measure.
What is a Benchmark?
Southcoast compares all of its internal quality measures against benchmarks to help gauge our performance. Benchmarks are usually an external suitable comparison group, such as a national average, or an expected target set by an external agency. When none are available, Southcoast sets its own internal performance goals.
This benchmark: The benchmark for this measure comes from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control & Prevention National Healthcare Safety Network database, which creates a national average from hundreds of hospitals nationwide.
What Does This Mean?
Ventilator-associated pneumonia can be a serious condition in some patients. Therefore, our goal is to keep patients as safe as possible by working hard to prevent this particular type of pneumonia.
How to Compare this Measure: Ventillator-associated pnemonia, or VAP, is usually reported in one of two ways:
- Rate of infection, usually as "number of infections per 1,000 ventilator days." This is the way Southcoast reports this measure. With this measure, lower is better.
- Compliance with interventions to reduce VAP, usually reported as the percentage of patients on ventilators who receive the "Ventilator Bundle" (see below). With this measure, higher is better.
When comparing institutions, make sure the measures are reported the same way.
What Southcoast is Doing to Improve this Measure
Southcoast participates in the Institute for Healthcare Improvement's 5 Million Lives Campaign. We are committed to making sure all patients on a ventilator receive the "Ventilator Bundle" as recommended by IHI.
The bundle prescribes the following care for patients on a ventilator:
- Elevating the head of the patient's bed between 30 and 45 degrees to reduce the risk of bacteria from flowing into the patient's lungs.
- A daily "sedation vacation" and daily checks to see if the patient can be safely taken off the ventilator as soon as possible.
- Medications that prevent stomach ulcers to reduce the risk of creating bacteria that could travel into the lungs.
- Medication to prevent blood clots, called deep vein thrombosis that can occur when a patient is sedated and bed-ridden for prolonged periods of time.
In addition, nurses perform frequent mouth care on these patients to prevent germs from entering the lungs.
If an infection develops, a team of experts reviews the case to determine what we can learn and do better.
A Note About Our Data
All data on this site are aggregate data for all Southcoast Hospitals sites.
Trend for this Measure
This chart shows how this measure has changed over the past seven quarters.
Contact Us
Quality and patient safety is extremely important to Southcoast Hospitals. Let us know whether this information is helpful or how we could better serve you.
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