The VAP Monitor

DRMHOPE Ventilator-Associated Pneumonia (VAP) Quality Monitor is a software tool that monitors clinical transactions as they occur within electronic medical record system and uses embedded logic to evaluate the transactions against pre-defined processes of care related preventing VAP. This tool then presents the status of each process in real time using a red/yellow/green dashboard for each of the VAP bundle elements on each ventilated patient on the unit. The information is constantly available via a wall-mounted monitor, or it can be displayed on demand at any user's desktop. Caregivers access the VAP results via monitors and PCs throughout their shift, but especially during the multidisciplinary care rounds that occur throughout the day on the ICU. Additionally the charge the nurse tracks the VAP monitor and assists the staff nurses who might be falling behind in their charting or their care duties due to other competing priorities. Finally the system engages physicians by increasing consisting use of the ventilator and sedation order sets and by more active discussions about them at interdisciplinary care rounds.