Organizational Change

This paper is to describe the need for safety securement devices in the emergency room. It will discuss the benefits of safety securement devices for patients and the hospital. The paper will include the history of the organization, the proposed change and rationale for the change, and ways in which the proposed change is compatible with the organization's culture.

LAC+USC Medical Center, founded in 1878, is one of the largest teaching hospitals in the country. LAC+USC provides service to 50,000 inpatients and 750,000 outpatients annually. The hospital is licensed for 1,395 beds and budgeted to staff 745 beds. The LAC+USC Trauma Center is a level I American College of Surgeons-approved Trauma Center. Since 1885 LAC Medical Center has partnered with Keck School of Medicine of USC. The hospital is staffed by more than 450 full-time faculty members of the Keck School and approximately 850 medical residents in training. LAC+USC has specialized facilities and services and a state-of-the-art burn center, Level III neonatal intensive care unit, Level I trauma service, an NIH-funded clinical research center and a HIV/AIDS outpatient center.

Aerial shot of the LAC+USC Medical Center

USC Norris Cancer Hospital

USC University Hospital

The mission is to provide accessible, affordable and culturally sensitive healthcare to every patient in our care; to provide services through an integrated delivery system to residents of Los Angeles County regardless of ability to pay (Employee Orientation Handbook, 2002, p. 12). The vision is, "to be a fully integrated health care delivery system providing high quality and cost effective clinical services that meets the needs of our community" (Employee Orientation Handbook, 2002, p. 12).

There are several clinical studies to support the use of safety securement devices that demonstrate significant reductions in catheter related bloodstream infections, suture related needlesticks, and cost effectiveness in patients with central venous catheter devices. In the United States over 200,000,000 peripheral iv's are inserted...