b'When a 90-year-old woman was admitted to CH-L, her family way, Boulanger explains, which is the breakthrough in getting was distressed by her condition. Once active and sharp-minded, them to clear the cobwebs and respond. Beyond the emotional she had become confused, irritable, and largely unresponsiveimpact of helping patients reconnect with their families, AATM Our Impact classic symptoms of delirium. Thats when quality anddirectly addresses quality and safety concerns in hospital settings patient safety nurse Jenny Boulanger, RN, stepped in with aby offering improved mental status for patients.THE groundbreaking approach that changed the patients outcome. This, Boulanger adds, means that patients are less likely to fall, Boulanger encountered the patient during multidisciplinaryare able to use their call bells effectively, and reduce their risk of POWERrounds and, upon hearing about the womans condition blood clots and other complicationsand they often recover excessive sleeping, not eating or drinking, and unable toand go home faster.OF TOUCH participate in necessary evaluationsrecognized an opportunityIn the case of the 90-year-old patient treated by Boulanger, the to employ a new technique on which shed recently been trained. Within 20 minutes of working with a colleague to apply theintervention enabled her to complete a swallow evaluation, Attention and Awareness Through Movement (AATM) method,advance her diet, and take oral medications. Though her family a systematic movement protocol, the patients conditionultimately decided to take her home three days later for comfort dramatically changed. care, AATM provided her with precious final conversations that otherwise would have been impossible.She woke up and was able to have a conversation, Boulanger recalls, adding that, in a particularly moving moment, the patientI call this magical. Im a believer, Boulanger says. We were able looked at her grandson and said, Hi, Ive missed you, followedto wake her up to engage with her family. That made the end of by a poignant observation: I was lost. her life so meaningful because she was able to communicate with them before her final days.Prior to applying AATM, hospital staff had administered what has long been considered the gold standard protocol for patientsAfter seeing its effectiveness, Intensive Care Unit (ICU) staff in exhibiting signs of delirium. But that didnt work. BoulangerLaconia are eager to receive training in the technique. The next credits her training to co-worker, Dana Bisson, MSN, RN, who isstep, Boulanger says, is to have them, and others system-wide, leading a system-wide interdisciplinary delirium prevention andwork with Bisson on a 4-hour training that will allow more nurses management initiative at CHHS, partnering with other medicalto perform AATM on patients. The goal is to continue gathering staff to implement innovative clinical strategies for managing thedata, refine techniques, and eventually make it a system-wide NURSE SCIENTIST altered state. intervention.Dana Bisson, RN|Unlike traditional approaches to delirium that rely heavilyFor healthcare professionals like Boulanger who have witnessed on medication, AATM uses strategic sensory input through aits effects, the intervention represents the essence of nursing care.sequence of head-to-toe movements to reactivate the brain, fromKnowing that something you can do without medicine can face washing to range of motion exercises. improve a patients quality of life is why we became nurses, Doing it in this systematic order helps engage the brain a specificshe says. Our goal is to help people get better.14 CONCORD HOSPITAL HEALTH SYSTEM |Quality & Safety: Our Foundation'