# Application of six sigma management in surgical site infection reduction of patients with craniocerebral surgeries

## TL;DR

This study shows that using Six Sigma management in neurosurgery can reduce infections and improve patient outcomes after craniocerebral surgeries.

## Contribution

The study demonstrates the effectiveness of Six Sigma management in reducing surgical site infections in craniocerebral surgeries.

## Key findings

- The study group had a significantly lower incidence of surgical site infections compared to the control group.
- Patients in the study group had shorter hospital stays and higher nursing satisfaction scores.
- Six Sigma management improved nursing quality and patient quality of life.

## Abstract

Surgical site infection (SSI) is the most common hospital-acquired infection in neurosurgery. SSI after craniocerebral surgeries may cause serious harm to the prognosis of patients. Six Sigma management is a new type of management approach, and it reduces possible errors to the minimum by designing and monitoring processes, thereby achieving the highest level of quality and efficiency. However, the role of Six Sigma management in reducing SSI in patients with craniocerebral surgeries is not clear. Our study aimed to explore the effect of Six Sigma management in controlling surgical site infections in neurosurgery patients.

This was a retrospective study. A total of 546 patients who underwent craniocerebral surgeries and were admitted to Taihe County People's Hospital from January 2021 to December 2021 were selected as the control group. A total of 550 patients who underwent craniocerebral surgeries and were admitted to Taihe County People's Hospital from January 2022 to December 2022 were selected as the study group. The control group adopted routine infection prevention and control methods. The study group adopted Six Sigma management methods. The incidence rate of SSIs, detection rate of pathogenic bacteria, hospital stay, nursing quality, quality of life and nursing satisfaction were compared in both groups.

Compared with the control group, the study group had lower incidence rate of SSIs, lower detection rate of pathogenic bacteria, shorter hospital stay, higher nursing quality scores, higher quality of life scores and better nursing satisfaction (P < 0.05 and P < 0.01).

Six Sigma management can diminish the incidence rate of SSIs, diminish the detection rate of pathogenic bacteria, shorten the hospital stay, promote the nursing quality, promote the quality of life and enhance the nursing satisfaction of patients with craniocerebral surgeries.