Three Lafayette General Health entities awarded 2018 Funds for Safety Grants

Abrom Kaplan Memorial Hospital (AKMH), Lafayette General Surgical Hospital (LGSH) and St. Martin Hospital (SMH) received the 2018 Funds for Safety Grants. The Funds for Safety Grant Program was created in 2012 by the Louisiana Hospital Association Trust Fund to help fund its members’ initiatives to improve patient or visitor safety. Since its creation, the grant program has awarded more than $1.7 million to fund approximately 100 unique projects for facilities in Louisiana.

AKMH will use the grant to purchase bladder scanners to reduce catheter associated urinary tract infections in patients. This will be the second time AKMH was awarded this grant. In 2012 AKMH received a safety grant project for improving cardiac arrest outcomes by 5 percent.

“We are thrilled to receive this much needed grant to help decrease urinary tract infections in patients, which will ultimately keep our patients healthier and provide a better experience for them,” said Bryce Quebodeaux, CEO of AKMH.

Through this grant, LGSH will use the fund for video-assisted laryngoscopy for difficult intubations, securing an airway without multiple attempts. Video laryngoscopy is a form of indirect laryngoscopy in which the clinician does not directly view the larynx. Instead, visualization of the larynx is performed with a fiber optic or digital laryngoscope.

“This grant will be able to improve visualization during procedures, particularly with patients who have difficult airways to navigate through,” said Kim Dooley, Administrator of LGSH.

The 2018 safety grant for SMH will be used to implement a transcutaneous oxygen measurement (TcPO2) tool in order to reduce pressure ulcers in patients. This is a non-invasive method of measuring the oxygen level of the tissue below the skin. Since oxygen is carried by the blood, TCOM can be used as an indirect measure of blood flow to the tissue.

“This tool will assist our patients in the med-surg and swingbed unit as a predictor for prevention of wounds as well as promote healing for improved patient outcomes,” said Karen Wyble, CEO of SMH.

AKMH, LGSH and SMH will complete this improvement over the course of the next year within their individual grant guidelines.