PPAHS Launches New Campaign Targeting Orthopedic Blood Clots

CHICAGO, Oct. 20, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- The Physician-Patient Alliance for Health & Safety (PPAHS) has announced it will begin a new patient safety campaign to develop practical solutions to help assess and prevent venous thromboembolism (VTE) in patients undergoing orthopedic procedures, particularly total knee and hip replacement.  More commonly known as blood clots, VTE consists of both deep vein thrombosis (DVT) and pulmonary embolisms (PE) .

In the past, PPAHS has focused on the issue of VTE regarding maternal patients and stroke patients.  In collaboration with panels of international health experts, PPAHS has developed the OB VTE Safety Recommendations and the Stroke VTE Safety Recommendations (both of which are free resources on our website).  Members of the panel included:

• Atul Gawande, MD, MPH (Brigham and Women's Hospital)
• Peter J. Pronovost, MD, PhD, FCCM (Johns Hopkins Medicine)
• Mark Alberts, MD, FAHA (Southwestern Medical Center)
• Irene Katzan, MD, MS (Cleveland Clinic)
• William M. Callaghan, MD, MPH (CDC)
• Frank Federico, RPh (Patient Safety Advisory Group, The Joint Commission)
• Mary D'Alton, MD (Columbia University Medical Center)

According to the CDC, VTE is estimated to affect 900,000 Americans annually.  It is a preventable, hospital-acquired condition that is responsible for 100,000 deaths each year.  The US Department of Health & Human Services (HHS) has also issued a statement identifying venous thromboembolism as the third most prevalent factor accounting for readmission 30-days after surgery (6.3%).

Hip and knee replacement operations are among the most commonly performed procedures in the U.S. About 1 million of these procedures are performed each year.  The 30-day readmission rate following hip and knee replacement is 4.3% and 3.9% respectively, with the readmission rate rising to 7.8% 90-days after surgery.

Over the next few months, PPAHS will be putting together an expert patient safety panel on orthopedic VTE to advise and help answer healthcare reporters' questions.  The organization is looking for interviewees for Patient Safety Podcasts (similar to a series created in collaboration with the Society of Hospital Medicine), and for guest contributions to its blog.

About Physician-Patient Alliance for Health & Safety

Physician-Patient Alliance for Health & Safety is a non-profit 501(c)(3) whose mission is to promote safer clinical practices and standards for patients through collaboration among healthcare experts, professionals, scientific researchers, and others, in order to improve healthcare delivery. For more information, please go to www.ppahs.org.

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SOURCE Physician-Patient Alliance for Health & Safety (PPAHS)

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