Hackensack Meridian Health Jersey Shore University Medical Center has reduced readmission rates among stroke patients by 50 percent after implementing the Vocera Care Inform solution. Care Inform enables care team members to record live discharge instructions and teach-back sessions at the patient’s bedside.
Nurse practitioners at Jersey Shore University Medical Center use the Care Inform mobile app to record personalized discharge instructions and create educational resources for patients with acute ischemic stroke. Patient-specific audio recordings and digital health libraries are securely saved in the software platform, where patients and family members can access these resources via phone or computer at any time during a hospital stay or after discharge.
“We are empowering stroke survivors and their families with personalized, rich educational resources to help manage stroke recovery after they leave the hospital,” said Jackie Dwyer, R.N., MSN, CNRN, Stroke Program manager at Jersey Shore University Medical Center. “I think when patients hear discharge instructions and teach-back sessions that include their own voices and the voices of their nurses it helps improve accountability and compliance.”
Approximately 1 in 4 stroke survivors has another stroke. Knowing the signs and symptoms and following the right care plan can help reduce secondary risks.
After implementing the patient education program supported by Care Inform, the Jersey Shore University Medical Center Stroke Rescue Center reduced readmission rates to 3.6 percent from 7.2 percent. Additionally, the Center saw a 7 percent increase in medication compliance and a 3 percent increase in patients making follow-up appointments with their primary care physicians. There also were increases in the number of patients who could recite signs and symptoms of stroke and personal risk factors.
Dwyer shared details of the patient education and communication program at the AANN Advances in Stroke Care Conference, August 22-24, in Austin, Texas.
“Stroke programs across the country can benefit from the communication strategy and secondary prevention initiative deployed at Jersey Shore University Medical Center,” said Rhonda Collins, DNP, R.N., chief nursing officer of Vocera. “It’s impressive to see how the hospital’s Stroke Rescue Center uses voice technology to transform patient engagement and improve care plan compliance.”