Cardinal Health gives $1M in grants for medication management, OR safety

Cardinal Health (NYSE: CAH) Foundation has awarded a total of $1 million in grants to 40 organizations for projects designed to improve medication management and operating room safety.

The grants range from $7,500 to $37,500 each, and are part of a healthcare quality-improvement program that Cardinal launched in 2008, according to a statement. Cardinal has awarded 108 grants totaling about $3 million over the quality program’s life.

Four Ohio hospitals are among this year’s grant recipients:

• Nationwide Children’s Hospital Foundation in Columbus, for an initiative to reduce adverse drug events
• Mercy Willard Hospital in Willard for an inpatient-outpatient diabetes management program
• Cleveland Clinic Foundation for an evaluation of patient education methods for those on warfarin, an anti-coagulation drug
• Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center for a program on pediatric airway management

Earlier this month, Dublin, Ohio-based Cardinal reported its financial results for its fiscal 2010. Revenue grew 3 percent to $98.5 billion, while earnings slid 44 percent to $642 million.