Participating hospitals in Maryland eCare
eCare expands to six Maryland Hospitals Christiana Care is helping hospitals in rural Maryland by monitoring patients remotely around the clock. ®
The VISICU eICU Program, in place at more than 200 hospitals nationwide, improves the quality of care in Intensive Care Units. In 2005, Christiana Care was the first health system in America to adapt the program to monitor critically ill patients in the Emergency Department and post-anesthesia care units. The six hospitals, known collectively as Maryland eCare, joined forces two years ago to solve the shortage of critical care physicians. Studies show that patients do
Special care for seniors
Washington County Health System, Hagerstown
The hospitals collectively admit more than 66,000 patients every year.
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Civista Medical Center, LaPlata
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Peninsula Regional Medical Center, Salisbury St. Mary’s Hospital, Leonardtown Atlantic General Hospital, Berlin
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better and require shorter stays in the hospital when doctors trained in critical care manage their care. Under the agreement, Christiana Care critical care physicians and nurses monitor patients at the Maryland hospitals
An 11-bed unit for Acute Care of the Elderly, also known as ACE, opened on the Wilmington campus. Based on an existing program at Christiana Hospital, the unit addresses specific concerns of patients age 70 and older, who may be more susceptible to falls and pressure wounds or may be cognitively impaired. ACE nurses receive special training in providing care to older patients. The concept serves an increasing population of especially frail patients coming to the hospital from nursing homes.
Connecting uninsured patients with health coverage programs
Calvert Memorial Hospital,
• •Prince Frederick
Christiana Care reaches out to our neighbors who don’t have insurance by providing assistance with financial services through the Medical Assistance Eligibility Program. Through PATHS LLC, self-pay patients who qualify are enrolled in Medicaid. Christiana Care refers about 7,500 unin-
through audio and visual technology, combined with intelligent monitoring and alarm systems. In addition to enabling health care professionals to act quickly and prevent complications, the system also reduces stress and improves nurse retention in the ICUs.
That also was the inspiration for a housecall program for the elderly. The project augments the work of existing senior centers in New Castle and Wilmington by ensuring elderly people who are housebound have access to health care. “By providing a medical arm to social services already provided by the centers, we can improve care in place to frail, elderly people in the community,” says Ina Li, M.D., associate director of Geriatrics.
sured patients to PATHS each year; last year 5,500 enrolled in Medicaid. The 2,000 patients who did not qualify aren’t left to financially fend for themselves. They’re referred back to Christiana Care, where they can learn if they are eligible to participate in the Financial Assistance Program. Facts & Figures
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