The level of integration varies among health systems. Some health systems have pharmacists embedded in the clinics, while others manage their patients centrally from their operations center. In both scenarios, the documentation of education and patient counseling is captured in the health system’s electronic health record, in which both providers and pharmacists work.

The Ochsner Digital Medicine “focus factory” model augments the standard primary care service. The program is built on a team-based model of care that includes physicians, advanced practice providers, pharmacists, and health coaches, and features remote physiologic monitoring, medication management in accordance with current evidence-based guidelines, and lifestyle coaching.

As our experience shows, standardizing PIVC insertion practices can help an organization achieve the Triple Aim by improving patient safety and satisfaction, while significantly decreasing hospital costs. More than five years after beginning this journey, we are sharing our experience as a road map for other facilities looking to improve their processes and quality of care for a procedure that impacts nearly every patient in the hospital.

The model presented herein admittedly constitutes a “respectable draft” only, setting out standards that push toward service excellence and focusing on the best interests of customers: the residents who’ve chosen a nursing facility to be their 24/7 care-based home for their remaining time in this world.