Academic-Practice Partnership to Prevent and Manage Pressure Injuries: An Evidence-Based Quality Improvement...

Area of Science:

• Quality Improvement in Healthcare
• Nursing Practice
• Patient Safety

Background:

• An evidence-based quality improvement (EBQI) initiative was implemented to assess the impact of an academic-practice (A-P) partnership on quality measures in acute care.
• The focus was on improving the prevention and management of hospital-acquired pressure injuries (HAPI) within an academic health center.

Approach:

• A pre-/post-descriptive design utilized a practice-informed active learning program.
• The A-P council employed a participatory action research approach, integrating evidence-based practice (EBP) steps, the Donabedian Model, and stakeholder engagement principles.
• An integrative literature review identified HAPI prevention/management EBP, followed by a gap analysis to pinpoint discrepancies between EBP and current practices.

Key Points:

• The initiative identified 79 HAPI best practices and prioritized 3 key gaps for intervention.
• Actions included restructuring the HAPI program, enhancing leadership, modifying reporting, hiring specialized nurses (WOC), standardizing surveys, improving documentation, and increasing transparency.
• While overall HAPIs rose by 6.3% (2019-2021), the incidence of severe HAPIs (Stages 3 and 4) decreased by 9.9% during the same period.

Conclusions:

• The A-P partnership model effectively addressed complex clinical issues and quality improvement goals.
• This initiative fostered a culture of inquiry, scholarship, and enhanced nursing capacity.
• The findings suggest A-P partnerships are valuable for advancing patient safety and clinical outcomes.