Franciscan Health System

Science points to higher power in health

DETROIT - Each Wednesday, more than 250 people attend the Blessing of the Sick service at the Roman Catholic Solanus Casey Center on Detroit's east side. They pray for healing for themselves or people they love.

Recently, Katie Valenti, 28, was among the faithful who gathered at the center. The Plymouth, Mich., native was in town visiting from Mandeville, La.

In January, Valenti was diagnosed with Stage 2 breast cancer. She has had two surgeries and eight rounds of chemotherapy and will undergo radiation therapy this month.

Faith always has been important to the Valenti family, but the cancer has given them even more reason to pray.

In modern times, medicine and faith have had clear borders. Doctors treated the physical body, and religious leaders fed the spiritual body. But thanks to a growing body of research and the increased presence of health practitioners whose faith is part of their practice, religion and medicine are joining forces in ways far beyond the hospital chaplain.

"There is a fair amount of science to substantiate the power of prayer, belief and spirituality to positively impact the healing process," said Dr. Michael Seidman, medical director of the Center for Complementary and Integrative Medicine at the Henry Ford Health System. "It matters not what you believe. It matters that you believe."

Seidman, who also is a surgeon, said that on occasion, with the family's consent, he has prayed with his patients before surgery.

"I have asked if I may join in," he said. "I'm there to reassure the family and to bond with them. It shows that I, too, have faith, and it is important to me as well. It's certainly not going to hurt, and if people believe it'll help, that helps the healing process."

Valenti, who attended the Detroit healing service with her mother, Karen Valenti, agrees.

"It gives you courage to fight," Katie Valenti said. "There were some dark moments when I was first diagnosed and after my surgeries when I didn't know if I'd make it through. My mom would say, 'Send up all your fears and worries and discomforts and aches and say, "Today I can't handle this, but I know you can.'" I did, and I felt better, and I got through the day. Now, I pray and thank God that I'm still here."

Not only is faith entering hospitals in varying ways, hospitals have entered houses of worship.

In 2009, the Henry Ford system piloted a project aimed at reducing health disparities within the African-American community. It put kiosks in four churches where parishioners can go for information and guidance on a variety of health concerns, including obesity, diabetes, high blood pressure, heart disease and HIV-AIDS.

Emerging Clinical Surveillance Technology Uses Data to Take ...

In France Pitera, vice president, clinical information technology, Hospira

In recent years we have made tremendous progress in health information technology that not only help clinicians provide better care for patients, but also to improve security. Tool technology available today, and increasing adoption of clinical monitoring systems, using existing hospital data to identify potential problems and help patients quickly identify and isolate infections .The electronic clinical monitoring, such as platform TheraDoc Hospira, are designed specifically to help detect and monitor healthcare-associated infections (ICD) such as MRSA (Staphylococcus aureus resistant to methicillin), C. Diff (C. difficile associated disease) and other epidemics such as influenza virus H1N1.

Clinical monitoring systems to analyze hospital data in near real time, allowing clinicians to better identify and respond to changes in the patient's condition at this time, the indices appear in the system of hospital information technology . Essentially, they work like air traffic control systems for hospitals, helping to manage data and alert clinicians to potential infections faster than typical manual tracking methods. The unfortunate truth about these staggering statistics is that many of these deaths are preventable.

Hospitals that have implemented electronic clinical surveillance systems have reported that the technology helps save lives and money. For example, clinicians at Johns Hopkins reported dramatic success using TheraDoc, with 50 percent faster confirmation of HAIs and 98 percent accuracy of infection identification. [iv] Caregivers at Franciscan Health Systems in Washington state prevented more than 200 ADEs and saved more then $560,000 within six months of introducing TheraDoc. [v]

At Saint Francis Medical Center in Peoria, Illinois, clinical surveillance technology was integral to the institution effectively managing the 2009 H1N1 influenza pandemic. The system helped clinicians manage and coordinate infectious disease care, which is critical during fast-moving situations like a superbug outbreak. Saint Francis reported that TheraDoc was particularly helpful in providing a mechanism to enable clinicians to track patient information and monitor which patients were being admitted with influenza-like symptoms—ultimately helping the hospital treat patients more quickly and prevent potential infections. [vi]

While the results will vary for each individual facility, these are just a few examples of how electronic clinical surveillance systems help facilities drive better patient outcomes and reduce costs. Currently, TheraDoc is used in almost 300 hospitals in 35 states ranging from 50-bed community hospitals and integrated delivery networks (IDNs) with more than 3,700 beds, to academic and Veteran Affairs medical centers.

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