Readmission Reduction Success with Krames Patient Education

Patient Education is a critical element of readmission reduction programs.  Below are two abstracts about successful programs that implemented Krames as part of their program.

Columbia San Jose Medical Center- 1998 - Much of Heart Failure management entails lifestyle changes in the areas of diet, weight monitoring and medication compliance. This study assessed the effectiveness of using a low-cost education program in increasing self-care and medication compliance and reducing readmission rates.  The results of the year-long study of 109 patients confirm the efficacy of education as  a disease management tool. Participants' readmission rate was reduced to nearly half that of nonparticipants, resulting in substantial cost savings for the hospital and healthcare payors. This Heart Failure Outcome study was conducted at Columbia San Jose Medical Center (CSJMC), an acute care facility, by a multidisciplinary team of nurses, patient educators, a pharmacist and Krames.

Del Sol Medical Center - 2005 - 2008.  Heart Failure is a major risk factor for the mostly Latino population in El Paso, Texas.  Del Sol Medical Center is a 336-bed community hospital.  75% of Del Sol patients are Latino with Heart Failure as the most common cardiovascular diagnosis.  Heart Failure patients were not receiving care in compliance with national guidelines and Del Sol had high readmission rates.  With funding from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation's Expecting Success: Excellence in Cardiac Care, Del Sol implemented an interdisciplinary task force that developed a comprehensive heart disease and heart failure program that resulted in 94% of all heart failure patients receiving care in accordance to national guidelines (up from 15%); 89% of heart attack patients receiving care according to guidelines (up from 17%), and reduced heart failure readmission form 16% to 7%.