Take a journey with two KY hospitals to learn how they exceeded their improvement goal for enhancing VTE prophylaxis and MRSA PCR-Guided Antimicrobial Stewardship!

Please join the KHA quality team and two of our KY member hospitals, Pikeville Medical Center and Saint Joseph Hospital, who will be taking a deep dive into their journeys of quality improvement project work to achieve excellence in patient care and outcomes. Please read more below for a detailed look at their projects and what exciting information you will learn from our hospitals! 

Pikeville Medical Center: Grounded and Secure: MRSA PCR-Guided Antimicrobial Stewardship: Reducing Anti-MRSA Therapy and Improving Patient Safety in the Setting of Routine Nasal Antiseptic Use

Ashley Holland, PharmD, MBA, Lead Infectious Disease Pharmacist, Antimicrobial Stewardship Pharmacist Director from Pikeville Medical Center will be presenting their hospital improvement project on a novel application of MRSA nasal PCR-guided diagnostic stewardship in the setting of routine nasal antiseptic use. They established a valid testing protocol which required direct collaboration with the manufacturer to define appropriate timing between Nozin® administration and MRSA PCR collection, ensuring diagnostic accuracy. Implementation of this standardized, EMR-integrated protocol resulted in significant reductions in empiric anti-MRSA therapy, including decreased vancomycin exposure, days of therapy, and length of stay without compromising patient safety. This innovative approach demonstrates how diagnostic stewardship can meaningfully improve antimicrobial use and patient outcomes and provides a scalable model for institutions integrating non-antibiotic infection prevention strategies with antimicrobial stewardship initiatives.

 Saint Joseph Hospital: Preventing the Preventable: Enhancing VTE Prophylaxis in Hospital Settings Through Pharmacy-Driven Intervention

Monica Owen, PharmD, BCPS, BCCCP, Clinical Pharmacist Specialist from Saint Joseph Hospital will be presenting on their goal to enhance Venous Thromboembolism (VTE) prophylaxis in the hospital setting. This project represents a significant shift from a reactive to a proactive system-level approach for VTE prevention, driven by real-time EHR data. By empowering clinical pharmacists with a standardized workflow and leveraging EHR reports for precise identification of at-risk patients. The significant improvement in VTE prophylaxis rates and the observed reduction in PE NPOA underscore the project’s clinical efficacy. This proven practice laid a strong foundation for permanent adoption across Saint Joseph Hospital and for widespread implementation within other CommonSpirit Health facilities in the South Region, ultimately extending its positive impact on patient safety and VTE reduction on a broader scale.