Antibiotic Stewardship Committee Helps CKHS Reach its Goal of Providing the Best Patient Care
In an ongoing effort to provide the best quality patient care, Crozer-Keystone Health System’s Antibiotic Stewardship Committee works to formalize important initiatives associated with appropriate antimicrobial use.
Antibiotic stewardship programs are designed to optimize antimicrobial therapy administered to hospitalized patients, to ensure cost-effective therapy, and to improve patient outcomes while containing bacterial resistance. More and more health systems are creating antibiotic stewardship programs due to the growing concern of antimicrobial resistance that can lead to increased hospital stay, toxicity and increased costs to patients and hospitals.
The various elements of antibiotic stewardship have been in place for many years at CKHS. The system-wide committee was formed in 2011 to more formally allow members of the health system to discuss literature pertaining to antimicrobial management supporting practice guidelines and evidence-based medicine to ensure that patients are receiving the safest and highest quality medical care.
The committee is chaired by John Munshower, D.O., FACSG. Other Crozer-Keystone physicians - including Infectious Disease chiefs Steven Nelson, M.D., Jackeline Iacovella, M.D., and Jeffrey Darnall, M.D., - provide valuable support and leadership.
“The committee is comprised of a multi-disciplinary team of caregivers,” Munshower says. “Since CKHS is a large health system, the committee was formed to ensure that all of the important team members have representation to complete the goals of being a high reliability organization that provides the best quality care. Each institution in the health system has the department head of infectious disease as the leader for their hospital. Pharmacy, infection control, and quality representatives are key team members with representation on the committee.”
In order to maintain a successful stewardship program, it must provide guidance for the proper use of antibiotics through literature-supported evidence-based medicine. Crozer-Keystone’s Antibiotic Stewardship Committee meets monthly to discuss how best to apply this information across CKHS. Having all CKHS prescribers, such as physicians, nurse practitioners and physician assistants, follow the antibiotic treatment guidelines will help assure patients get the safest, and most quality driven care they deserve.
“The proper use of antibiotic medications is paramount to saving lives, while simultaneously being cautious that the medications we use do not promote future bacterial resistance, which would make treating patients harder and harder in the future,” Munshower says.
An additional benefit of antibiotic stewardship programs is often cost savings to the hospital/health system when antibiotics are appropriately prescribed. The appropriate use of antibiotics will also preserve the effectiveness of current antimicrobial medication.
Current prescribers at CKHS are recommended to view the antibiotic treatment guidelines that have been created by the Antibiotic Stewardship Committee on the CKHS intranet. On the intranet, click on “Clinical” on the upper left side of the page, and then click “Antibiotic Treatment Guidelines” on the right side of the intranet site.
Crozer-Keystone is committed to providing the best possible care to its patients and is constantly reviewing the quality of care in a mission to do even better. By having an Antibiotic Stewardship Committee in place, CKHS is continuing to achieve its goal of delivering patient-centered, quality care in an efficient, cost-effective and caring manner.
Members of the Antibiotic Stewardship Committee
Physicians
o John Munshower, D.O., FACSG
o Sat Arora, M.D.
o Thomas Ball M.D.
o Riad Cachecho, M.D.
o Gregory Cuculino, M.D.
o Jeffrey Darnall, M.D.
o Jackeline Iacovella, M.D.
o Michael Kimzey, M.D.
o Steven Nelson, M.D.
o Karen Scoles, M.D.
o Gary Wendell, M.D.
• Administration: Patrick Gavin
• Infection Control: Christine Young
• IS: Cheryl Ralph
• Legal: Linda Ramsey
• Microbiology: Cheryl Branton
• Nursing: Connie Sonder
• Pharmacy: David Keenan
• Pharmacy: Ozana Lipka
• Pharmacy: Richard Pacitti
• Quality: Joby Kolsun, M.D.
