Evaluation of a Hospital-Based Pneumonia Nurse Navigator Program.
Journal Article (Journal Article)
Purpose
The aim of this study is to evaluate the effectiveness of a hospital-based pneumonia nurse navigator program.Design
This study used a retrospective, formative evaluation.Methods
Data of patients admitted from January 2012 through December 2014 to a large community hospital with a primary or secondary diagnosis of pneumonia, excluding aspiration pneumonia, were used. Data included patient demographics, diagnoses, insurance coverage, core measures, average length of stay (ALOS), disposition, readmission rate, financial outcomes, and patient barriers to care were collected. Descriptive statistics and parametric testing were used to analyze data.Results
Core measure performance was sustained at the 90th percentile 2 years after the implementation of the navigator program. The ALOS did not decrease to established benchmarks; however, the SD for ALOS decreased by nearly half after implementation of the navigator program, suggesting the program decreased the number and length of extended stays. Charges per case decreased by 21% from 2012 to 2014. Variable costs decreased by 4% over a 2-year period, which increased net profit per case by 5%. Average readmission payments increased by 8% from 2012 to 2014, and the net revenue per case increased by 8.3%.Conclusion
The pneumonia nurse navigator program may improve core measures, reduce ALOS, and increase net revenue. Future evaluations are necessary to substantiate these findings and optimize the cost and quality performance of navigator programs.Full Text
Duke Authors
Cited Authors
- Seldon, LE; McDonough, K; Turner, B; Simmons, LA
Published Date
- December 2016
Published In
Volume / Issue
- 46 / 12
Start / End Page
- 654 - 661
PubMed ID
- 27851707
Electronic International Standard Serial Number (EISSN)
- 1539-0721
International Standard Serial Number (ISSN)
- 0002-0443
Digital Object Identifier (DOI)
- 10.1097/nna.0000000000000422
Language
- eng