wong Wah Hospital (KWH) and Princess Margaret Hospital (PMH) in Kowloon West Cluster have both been honoured in the elite Asian Hospital Management Awards (AHMA) 2010, which are recognised as hallmarks of excellence in hospital management.

KWH's "A Strategic Approach to Enhance Linen Supply Logistic to Wards by Using Patient Statistic at Kwong Wah Hospital" project clinched the Excellence Award in the Customer Service category, whereas PMH's "A Simple Pressure Ulcer Prevention Programme Produces Dramatic Results" won the Excellence Award in the Departmental Service Improvement category.

The linen supply is an essential part of ward operations. Following a year of careful study and analysis of the correlation between linen requirements and in-patient data, KWH implemented a new mode that matches in-patient admission statistics with anticipated linen supply needs in the second quarter of 2009. Ad-hoc requests for additional linen declined by a substantial 47% during the first three months after its introduction.

The Award endorses KWH's conscientiousness about responding to patients' needs. "It proves the use of in-patient data to supply linen is the right direction for hospital logistics management," comments Mr Steve Chan, its General Manager (Administrative Services). "It also pleases frontline staff, who no longer face hassles about linen and can focus more on patient care instead."

PMH also shone in the AHMA 2010 with its Pressure Ulcer Prevention Programme. Pressure ulcers are internationally recognised as a Nursing Sensitive Outcome Indicator of the quality of care. Preventing them has long been a challenge to intensive care units (ICUs) worldwide. The ongoing efforts of the PMH ICU staff at all levels have achieved remarkable results since it rolled out its Pressure Ulcer Prevention Programme in 2007. The incidence of pressure ulcers there decreased by a dramatic 85% between 2007 and 2009. Whereas the average incidence rate was 14.65% per 1,000 patient bed-days in 2007, there was only one case during the first nine months of this year.

The Award testifies to PMH's perseverance in continuously improving the quality of its patient care. It also demonstrates the fruitful results of the combined efforts of the Unit's team.

Founded in 2001, the AHMA has recognised and honoured hospitals in Asia that have implemented outstanding and innovative projects and best practices. This year's Awards attracted 281 entries from 58 hospitals in 10 Asian countries and regions.