Hospital and Physician Update

November – December 2019

A message from Emily Santer, manager, Value Partnerships
I’d like to offer personal testimony about our CQIs

I’ve long admired our Collaborative Quality Initiatives, but never imagined I would personally benefit from their work.

I recently had a major surgical procedure, one that I’d had twice before outside Michigan. Even though I was a few decades older, this time I had a much better experience, with less pain and discomfort, a shorter hospital stay, fewer opioids and an easier recovery. I attribute much of this to the evidence-based care at the hospital, supported in part by the CQIs we sponsor.

CQIs bring hospitals and physicians across the state together to collect, share and analyze data, then design and implement changes to improve patient care. This had real impact for me.

I worried that I would wake up from surgery with a tube running through my nose into my stomach, which had caused tremendous discomfort in the previous surgeries. So I was thrilled to learn I wouldn’t need one because surgeons had concluded that the potential benefits did not outweigh the costs. With no tube, I was much more comfortable and could begin eating much sooner after surgery. I lost less weight, my energy level was higher, and I spent less time in the hospital than I had previously.

I was also concerned about post-operative pain. In earlier surgeries, I took large doses of opioids because of tremendous pain. As you may know, many of our CQIs are addressing reduction of opioids post-surgery, and I benefitted from this work. Despite a large incision, I experienced very little pain because they kept me on an epidural for three days following surgery and relieved my pain through small doses of opiates and extra strength acetaminophen.

My post-surgery recovery was also much easier than in the past. An evidence-based protocol developed by the Michigan Surgical Quality Collaborative helped me avoid an infection or other issues. I received more pre-surgery information, so I knew what to expect and how to self-manage my pain.

Thanks to the CQIs, I had a shorter hospital stay, better healing and a better patient experience. I feel fortunate to live in Michigan and be the beneficiary of this important work.

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