Pediatric Home Service (PHS) is one of the best health care providers in Minnesota and the whole US. PHS deals mainly with medically complex children by providing in-home care to them. The company’s main goal is to ensure that these children continue to live fully despite their medical conditions. The care and services they provide lead to fewer hospitalization cases, and the children can be at home and school with their friends and family. Notably, PHS has been awarded numerous awards for competent and quality services that have enabled it to expand and grow over the years. This paper will analyze this competency by discussing the initiatives it partakes in to ensure quality patient care.
Significantly, PHS’s success can be attributed to the organizations that create practice standards that regulate its performance. One of these organizations is The Joint Commission, which accredits health providers with certification licenses. It surveys the health care organization to determine if the organization’s standards are patient-centered. It creates policies that health care providers must meet to be considered fit to provide health care services. Thus, PHS services keep improving because it refers to the standards listed by the commission, which are updated every time. Another organization is the Minnesota Department of Health (MDH), whose mission is to protect, maintain and improve Minnesotans’ health. This institution sets health policies that Minnesotan health care providers must follow. The policies aim at benefiting the quality of health care service provision in Minnesota.
PHS mainly serves medically complex children in Minnesota and all other parts of the US. Home care nursing is one of the standard practices it offers. This service entails providing care for the medically ill children in the home and supporting their (the children) caregivers through training and counseling. Another service is infusion nursing and pharmacy, which entail nurses monitoring the patients’ administration of medication through IV. PHS also practices respiratory therapy, which entails respiratory services such as pulmonary treatment and assessments.
Notably, PHS quality and safety initiatives are based on the National Patient Safety Goals (NPSGs) set and reviewed by the Joint Commission. The current and updated NPSGs mention the goal to “improve the safety of using medications” (The Joint Commission, 2021). PHS “obeys” this goal through infusion nursing and pharmacy practice. This service ensures that medication is administered correctly with correct nutrition to support fast recovery. The infusion nurses are tasked with medicating the patients through IV and monitoring their progress during the administration. Another NPSGs goal that PHS observes in its practice standard is to “reduce the risk of health care – associated infections” (The Joint Commission). PHS provides support to caregivers by offering them professional training on how to handle the children while at home. This practice ensures that the children’s caregivers care for them (the children) carefully by observing the health requirements, reducing the risks of infection.
PHS is keen on measuring its effectiveness to ensure that it provides quality health services to its clients. One type of data it collects is the compliance department. This department is responsible of ensuring that PHS’ services are per the governing boards’ requirements. Castle and Ferguson (2010) explain that certification measure quality because it entails long proceses of surveys and observation to determine health providers’ ability to provide quality healthcare. PHS is certified by many boards that, its license certificates are a measure of its services’ quality and effectiveness. An excellent example is the certification from The Joint Commission that approves PHS as a qualified institution of offering quality home care services.
References
Castle, N. G. & Ferguson, J. C. (2010). What is Nursing Home Quality and How Is It Measured? The Gerontologist. 50(4), 426-442.
The Joint Commission. (2021). National Patient Safety Goals Effective January 2021 for the Home Care Program. https://www.jointcommission.org//media/tjc/documents/standards/national-patient-safety-goals/2021/npsg_chapter_ome_jan2021.pdf
