Improving patient education in hospitalized patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease: A quality improvement initiative using LEAN methodology.

Background: Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is a costly chronic disease affecting more than 15 million Americans. The prevalence among US veterans is 3 times higher than the general population.

Local Problem: The Veteran Health Administration developed a standardized, evidence-based COPD educational tool called Green Light to Go (GLTG) designed to educate patients on managing their COPD symptoms at home.

A Multi-Site Evaluation of A National Employee Wellness Initiative at the Department of Veterans Affairs.

Background: The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) seeks to transform its health care delivery from disease-centered, episodic care to a holistic and patient-centered model known as the Whole Health System (WHS) of care. Employee engagement and buy-in are crucial to this cultural transformation. The VA aspires to provide employees with opportunities to experience whole health in their personal and professional lives through a national Employee Whole Health (EWH) program.

Does Root Cause Analysis Improve Patient Safety? A Systematic Review at the Department of Veterans Affairs.

Background And Objectives: While root cause analysis (RCA) is used to analyze medical errors with a systems approach, evidence demonstrating its effectiveness in reducing patient harm remains sparse. The heterogeneity of the RCA methodology at different health care organizations has posed challenges to studying its value. The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) has an established and standardized RCA approach, making it an ideal context to study RCA's impact.

Cultivation of Nannochloropsis oceanica biomass rich in eicosapentaenoic acid utilizing wastewater as nutrient resource.

The eicosapentaenoic acid rich marine eustigmatophyte Nannochloropsis oceanica was grown in wastewaters sampled from four different industries (i.e. pesticides industry, pharmaceutical industry, activated sludge treatment plant of municipality sewage and petroleum (oil) industry).