Leading Practice: Reduction or Elimination of CAUTI - Blue.Point Supply Chain Solutions

AHRMM is offering a repository for leading and proven supply chain practices, case studies, and toolkits that are developed from a Cost, Quality, and Outcomes (CQO) perspective. The following Catheter Acquired Urinary Tract Infection (CAUTI) leading practice was submitted by:

Blue.Point Supply Chain Solutions, Andover, MA

Problem Statement: Rising costs, overuse of catheters compared to benchmarks, and higher than expected CAUTI rates led Southcoast Hospitals Group to embrace the Cost, Quality, Outcomes (CQO) Movement to look for a solution. 

Method: Southcoast Hospitals Group approached the entire category from a cost and quality perspective to implement a solution. Combining clinical product utilization, benchmarking, data analytics, and trending with nurse education and protocol review.

Means:

  • Blue.Point benchmarking identified the overuse of catheters.
  • Blue.Point best practice research led to an action plan focused on cost and clinical usage suggesting areas of improvement.
  • Southcoast Hospitals Group had strong administrative support to approach the entire category from a CQO perspective to implement.
  • Southcoast Hospitals Group’s focus on nurse-driven protocols allowed for clinical changes to positively impact outcomes.

Date Implemented: 2011 - ongoing

Outcomes:

Clinical:

  • Developed nurse-driven protocols for catheter removal.
  • Decrease CAUTI rate from nearly 5 to 2.8!

Financial:

  • $200k achieved savings by making product changes based on results of clinical product utilization study.

Tools:

  • Utilization benchmarking
  • Action plan/checklist
  • Interdisciplinary work group – clinicians, supply chain, finance, executive sponsorship
  • CAUTI algorithm
  • Nurse education

Attachments:

How Does Your Example Address the Issue from a CQO Perspective?

The cost avoidance, patient centered care, clinical outcomes, and the creation of new nurse-driven protocols has led to the creation of ‘Leading Practices’ as defined by the CQO Movement.

Related Resources

Letter/Comment
AHRMM comments to the FDA regarding an amendment to the UDI proposed rule to address the UDI implementation time frame required by the 2012 Fo
Advisory
The medical device excise tax is a feature of the Affordable Care Act. It is important to be knowledgeable about the tax and its effects.