It is remarkable that the 36 hospitals of the Kaiser Permanente system have achieved an under one percent pressure ulcer incidence rate, while the typical hospital still has an incidence rate of about five percent. Back in 2006, an NDF paper stated, "Risk assessment of all admitted patients followed by provision of specialized support surfaces to all deemed to be at risk offers real hope of reducing the present very high rate of hospital-caused pressure ulcers." This procedure came to be known as the "NDF Prevention Protocol". Evidently Kaiser has put this finding to use.
The NDF will make this our focus for the foreseeable future: If Kaiser Permanente can do it, why not you?
