The Tale of The Flying Gurney, and Other Events That Should Never Happen, But Still Do

While hospitals do their best to limit the number of so-called “never events” that happen to their patients, recent events show that there is still work to be done.

In patient safety circles, “never events” are mistakes that should simply never happen—seemingly commonsense mistakes such as a surgeon accidentally leaving a scalpel inside a patient, a newborn infant given to the wrong parents, or any death of a patient due to the gross negligence of a caregiver.

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De-escalation: Mitigating Violence in Healthcare

The International Association for Healthcare Security & Safety Foundation (IAHSS) in August 2017 released a report to address strategies to prevent workplace violence in healthcare. Those familiar with the healthcare industry won’t be surprised by its conclusion: Healthcare facilities need to take steps now to mitigate violent incidents.

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Study: Bullying Linked to Decline in Patient Safety

A majority of the events included verbal abuse and intimidating behavior, and other issues reported were work interference and humiliating and threatening behavior. The events occurred in many areas of care, especially in perioperative care, medical/surgical units, and emergency departments, and were often prompted by procedural errors and complications.

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