Reducing Falls by Engaging Patients
When clinicians walk into a patient’s room at Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston, they only need a quick glance at a laminated, color-coded sheet of paper next to the bed to understand the fall risks of that patient.
Top Patient Safety Concerns Touch on IT, Patient Identification Issues
This year’s list of top patient safety concerns proves that health systems continue to battle health IT implementation issues, while also struggling with patient safety stalwarts like disinfection, medication errors, and even patient identification.
Working With Law Enforcement to Better Protect Your Healthcare Workers and Patients
One might argue that the most effective managers are those who don’t manage alone. Effective managers listen to their employees and customers and incorporate their feedback into training and future management decisions. They work with dependable partners to improve processes and conditions.
Opioid Prescribing May be Impervious to State Laws
Drug monitoring laws are on the rise, but their effectiveness in curbing the prescribed use of hydromorphone, oxycodone, and other narcotics for pain is unclear.
Medical Errors Are The Third Leading Cause of Death: Now What?
Medical errors account for more than 250,000 deaths each year, ranking it third on the CDC’s list of common causes of death behind heart disease and cancer, but ahead of chronic respiratory disease, suicide, and car accidents, according to a recent study published in The BMJ.
How Ohio Hospitals Are Tackling Sepsis
Last year Ohio’s hospitals began a campaign to reduce sepsis encounters and related deaths by 30% by 2018. Nine months into the initiative, the OHA is reporting an 8% reduction in mortality.
Safety for All: Integrated Design for Inpatient Units
By James M. Hunt, AIA, NCARB: and David M. Sine, DrBE, CSP, ARM, CPHRM The concept of integrated healthcare – treating the whole person and all of his or her diagnoses, including mental illness, in one location with one team of clinicians—has gained considerable traction in the literature (U.S. Department of Health & Human … Continued
To Do No Harm, Rethink How to Measure Hand Hygiene
By Paul Alper, BA Primum non nocere is a Latin phrase that means, “First, do no harm.” It is a precept taught to healthcare students around the world and paraphrased in the Hippocratic Oath. Unfortunately, a vast amount of avoidable harm still takes place in healthcare settings worldwide. The good news is that a new … Continued
Community Circles: Transforming Care in Downeast Maine
By Holly Gartmayer-DeYoung, BSN, MBA Each morning, Eastport, Maine, is the first city in the United States to see the sunrise. Among the contiguous United States, Eastport has the deepest natural harbor (Fallows, 2014), one that buzzed with industry and prosperity during the 19th century and well into the 20th. The city’s fortunes have largely … Continued
What Clinical Decision Support Can Offer
By Nancy Zimmerman, RN, BSN Advanced clinical decision support (CDS) systems are playing an increasingly important role in promoting quality and safety in patient care, especially in diagnostic assistance. While arriving at a correct diagnosis will always be a mixture of art and science, with physicians ultimately responsible for all clinical decisions, CDS systems support … Continued