WISH team celebrates 10 years of helping seniors

Denise Lyons and Colleen McGhie — Denise Lyons, RN, presents the 2011 WISH Champion Award to Colleen McGhie, RN, of unit 4E at Christiana Hospital. Christiana Care's We Improve Senior Health Program celebrated 10 years of providing best-practice care to seniors in the hospital.

November 17, 2011

Christiana Care’s We Improve Senior Health (WISH) Program is a collaborative effort among nurses, physicians, pharmacists, rehabilitative therapists, social workers, dietitians and staff from other disciplines to improve the care that Christiana Care delivers to senior patients in all settings. Christiana Care recognized 10 years of the WISH program this fall with celebrations at Wilmington and Christiana hospitals.

WISH is a way of thinking about and caring for older patients. The WISH Senior Health Resource Team at Christiana Care serves as a resource to the doctors, nurses and other health care providers in the health system to ensure that everyone is working together to provide best-practice geriatric care. WISH Senior Health Resource Team members are empowered to make changes to avoid complications associated with hazards of hospitalization for older adults, including adverse drug reactions, delirium, depression, falls, malnutrition and dehydration.

WISH by the numbers

Four review courses offered for national certification in gerontology.
Five health systems visited Christiana Care to review the WISH program and ACE units.
Six articles on WISH published in peer review journals.
Ten posters on WISH program findings presented at national meetings.
More than 45 WISH training programs offered since 2001.
More than 75 oral presentations made by the WISH team to local and national audiences.
More than 1,450 health care providers completed WISH training and have become Senior Health Resource Team (SHRT) members.