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Showing results for tags 'USA'.
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Content ArticleAppreciative inquiry is a collaborative, strengths-based approach to change in organisations and other human systems. It identifies the positive strengths of an organisation or system and builds on these, rather than focusing on problems that need to be fixed. This article for PositivePsychology.com outlines the history, theory and framework of appreciative inquiry, as well as looking at real-life examples.
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Content ArticleThis toolkit from the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) National Center for Health Promotion and Disease Prevention contains tools that help promote patient engagement in healthcare settings. It was developed in consultation with VA staff and veterans and is based on the Patient Aligned Care Team (PACT) model.
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Content ArticleThe Joint Commission implemented medication management titration standards in 2017, with revisions in 2020. Researchers surveyed critical care nurses about their experiences with medication titration, use of clinical judgment when titrating, nurses’ scope and autonomy, and their moral distress. Of 781 respondents, 80% perceived the titration standards caused delays in patient care and 68% reported suboptimal care, both of which significantly and strongly predicted moral distress.
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Content ArticleThe Anesthesia Patient Safety Foundation Newsletter is the official publication of the non-profit Anesthesia Patient Safety Foundation and is published three times per year in Wilmington, Delaware, USA. Download all copies of the newsletter
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Content ArticleAs a growing number of hospitals pressed for resources due to the COVID-19 surge suspend elective surgeries, some healthcare professionals want the public to know exactly how important an "elective" procedure can be. The term "elective surgery" does not describe the acuity of the medical condition or necessity of the procedure. Rather, the use of "elective" distinguishes these surgeries that are scheduled in advance from emergency surgeries, such as trauma cases. As Americans learn of elective surgeries once again being postponed, physicians are taking to the web to debunk what can be a misnomer.
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Content ArticleResearch shows that peer support is an effective way to help healthcare staff recover when something goes wrong in patient care. The Betsy Lehman Center for Patient Safety has developed a toolkit that aims to help healthcare organisations create or expand peer support opportunities for staff. Each section of the online toolkit focuses on key elements of a successful peer support program - from gaining leadership buy-in to creating policies and collecting data.
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Content ArticleThis report by Charles River Laboratories looks at the results of a survey of more than 1,500 Americans conducted in May 2021 by The Harris Poll. The survey showed that 64% respondents believed that closer collaboration between industry organisations would lead to higher quality healthcare. The report contains data on: patient views about the state of the US healthcare system how much patients know about drug and vaccine development processes patient attitudes towards the US Food & Drugs Administration (FDA) how the COVID-19 pandemic has increased collaboration in healthcare.
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Content ArticleA study by Charles River found that patients believe the overall quality of healthcare would increase if stakeholders across the life sciences collaborated more. In this interview with Outsourcing-Pharma, Birgit Girshick, corporate executive vice-president of Charles River, discusses the results of the survey.
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Content Article
The Journal of Patient Safety
Patient-Safety-Learning posted an article in Research
Full articles require a subscription to the journal but the abstracts can be viewed free of charge. -
Content ArticleThis article in Patient Safety looks at a new approach to identifying and monitoring patients with sepsis developed by a team of nurses at WellSpan Health in the USA. The Central Alert Team (CAT) works remotely, looking for indicators of sepsis in patient charts and vital signs. They relay information and treatment advice to nurses working at the bedside and take an adaptive approach to find the best ways of working. This focused approach means the CAT nurses are able to quickly identify patients who are deteriorating and ensure treatment is administered at the right time.
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Content ArticleThis article published in Patient Safety discusses the role of patients and families in supporting a culture of safety. It looks at the concept of 'preoccupation with failure', a feature of high reliability organisations (HROs) and examines how patients can contribute to safety by being engaged in this process. The authors discuss a case study in which a patient contributes to safety improvements by sharing specific concerns. They draw out the importance of encouraging and empowering patients and their families to raise issues.
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News Article
US news publishes new list of best hospitals in the USA
Clive Flashman posted a news article in News
U.S. News has just released its list of the best hospitals with associated rankings and ratings. Scores are based on several factors, including survival, patient safety, nurse staffing and more. U.S. News reviews hospitals performance in 15 adult specialties, 10 pediatric specialties and 17 surgical procedures and medical conditions affecting millions of people across the country. Find all of the rankings and ratings here -
Content ArticleThis article in The Joint Commission Journal on Quality and Patient Safety reports on the findings of a pilot programme to improve healthcare staff wellbeing. Between November 2018 and May 2020, researchers engaged five healthcare sites to take part in a pilot intervention. The pilot used evidence-based approaches to wellbeing including a comprehensive culture assessment, redesigning daily workflow and leadership and team development. The researchers found that healthcare worker wellbeing improved when: an integrated, skills-based approach was taken there was a focus on team culture, interactions and leadership workflows were redesigned to promote positive emotions. This study suggests that combining a number of these approaches at the same time can improve healthcare working environments and reduce levels of staff burnout.
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News Article
Tennessee Board of Nursing’s unjust decision to revoke nurse’s license
Patient Safety Learning posted a news article in News
The US Institute for Safe Medication Practices (ISMP) has expressed its shock that the Tennessee (TN) Board of Nursing has recently revoked RaDonda Vaught’s professional nursing license indefinitely, fining her $3,000, and stipulating that she pay up to $60,000 in prosecution costs. RaDonda was involved in a fatal medication error after entering “ve” in an automated dispensing cabinet (ADC) search field, accidentally removing a vial of vecuronium instead of VERSED (midazolam) from the cabinet via override, and unknowingly administering the neuromuscular blocking agent to the patient. While the Board accepted the state prosecutor’s recommendation to revoke RaDonda’s nursing license, ISMP doubts that the Board’s action was just, and believe that it has set patient safety back by 25 years. On September 27, 2019, in a stark reversal of a 2018 decision to take no licensing action against the nurse, the TN Board of Nursing filed disciplinary action against RaDonda that focused on three violations: Unprofessional conduct related to nursing practice and the five rights of medication administration Abandoning or neglecting a patient requiring nursing care Failure to maintain a record of interventions. During the hearing, RaDonda was given an opportunity to testify and defend herself; however, she never shrank from admitting her mistake. According to her defense attorney, her acceptance of responsibility for the error was immediate, extraordinary, and continuing. However, RaDonda also testified that the error was made because of flawed procedures at the hospital, particularly the lack of timely communication between the pharmacy computer system and the ADC, which led to significant delays in accessing medications and the hospital’s permission to temporarily override the ADC to obtain prescribed medications that were not yet linked to the patient’s profile in the ADC. Although many questions regarding RaDonda’s alleged failures and the event remain unanswered, the Board still voted unanimously to strip RaDonda of her nursing license and levy the full monetary penalties allowed, noting that there were just too many red flags that RaDonda “ignored” when administering the medication. The ISMP has asked whether the Board’s action was fair and just in this situation? Read full story Source: ISMP, 12 August 2021 -
Content ArticleThis study, published online by Cambridge University Press, looks at the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on incidences of healthcare-associated infection in hospitals in the United States of America. The authors analyse events reported to the National Healthcare Safety Network for 2019 and 2020 by acute-care hospitals.
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News Article
1 in 500 Americans have died of COVID-19
Patient Safety Learning posted a news article in News
At a certain point, it was no longer a matter of if the United States would reach the gruesome milestone of 1 in 500 people dying of COVID-19, but a matter of when. A year? Maybe 15 months? The answer: 19 months. The burden of death in the prime of life has been disproportionately borne by Black, Latino, and American Indian and Alaska Native people in their 30s, 40s and 50s. “So often when we think about the majority of the country who have lost people to covid-19, we think about the elders that have been lost, not necessarily younger people,” said Abigail Echo-Hawk, executive vice president at the Seattle Indian Health Board and director of the Urban Indian Health Institute. “Unfortunately, this is not my reality nor that of the Native community. I lost cousins and fathers and tribal leaders." The pandemic has brought into stark relief centuries of entwining social, environmental, economic and political factors that erode the health and shorten the lives of people of colour, putting them at higher risk of the chronic conditions that leave immune systems vulnerable to the coronavirus. Many of those same factors fuel the misinformation, mistrust and fear that leave too many unprotected. Many people don’t have a physician they see regularly due in part to significant provider shortages in communities of colour. If they do have a doctor, it can cost too much money for a visit even if insured. There are language barriers for those who don’t speak English fluently and fear of deportation among undocumented immigrants. “Some of the issues at hand are structural issues, things that are built into the fabric of society,” says Enrique W. Neblett Jr., a University of Michigan professor who studies racism and health. Read full story (paywalled) Source: The Washington Post, 15 September 2021 -
Content ArticleHealthcare organisations strive to improve patient care experiences. One way is to use one-on-one provider counselling (shadow coaching) to identify and target modifiable provider behaviours. Quigley et al. examined whether shadow coaching improves patient experience across 44 primary care practices in a large urban US health centre. They found that shadow coaching improved providers' overall performance and communication immediately after being coached. However, these gains disappeared after 2.5 years. Regularly planned shadow coaching "booster" sessions might maintain or even increase the improvement gained in patient experience scores, but research examining additional coaching and optimal implementation is needed.
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Content Article
Patients For Patient Safety US
Patient Safety Learning posted an article in International patient safety
Patients for Patient Safety US (PFPS US) is a network of people and organisations aligned with the World Health Organization (WHO) and focused on making healthcare safe in the United States. It is led by people who have experienced medical error as a patient or in their families, and is committed to implementing the World Health Organization Global Patient Safety Action Plan in the USA. Read their 'Stories That Impacted Change' -
Content ArticleNumerous studies show a link between a positive safety culture (where safety is a shared priority) and improved patient safety within a healthcare organisation. The evidence is so convincing that the US National Patient Safety Foundation (NPSF) lists leadership support for a safety culture as the most important of eight recommendations for achieving patient safety. This overview from the Emergency Care Research Institute (ECRI) provides guidance and recommendations on how to embed approaches to safety culture within healthcare organisations.
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Content Article
AHRQ: Toolkit for engaging patients to improve diagnostic safety
Mark Hughes posted an article in Diagnostic error
Research suggests that a key factor contributing to diagnostic errors is the breakdown of communication between patients and healthcare professionals. The Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) in the United States has developed this toolkit to promote enhanced communication and information sharing between patients and healthcare professionals. It is designed to help patients, families, and health professionals work together as partners to improve diagnostic safety. -
Content ArticleNo two countries are alike when it comes to organising and delivering healthcare for their people, creating an opportunity to learn about alternative approaches. Schneider et al. compared the performance of 11 high-income countries healthcare systems.
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Content Article
Health equity resource series
PatientSafetyLearning Team posted an article in Health inequalities
To support hospitals and health systems starting from different points on their journey to strengthen health equity, the American Health Association's Institute for Diversity and Health Equity (IFDHE) is preparing four new guidance and resource toolkits to share evidence-based practices to inform organisational next steps. -
Content ArticleThis article reviews the Missouri Quality Initiative, which aims to reduce hospital admissions among nursing home residents. It involves placing an advanced practice registered nurse within the nursing home, supported by an interdisciplinary team of long-term care specialists, to identify when a resident may be experiencing a functional decline. Results from this initiative showed statistically significant decreases in hospitalisations.
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Content ArticleThis article by the Patient Safety Network provides an overview of the impact of diagnostic errors on patient safety. It gives examples of incorrect applications of heuristics and suggests ways to overcome cognitive bias in the diagnostic process.
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Content ArticleThe Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute (PCORI) is an independent, non-profit research organisation that seeks to empower patients and others with actionable information about their health and healthcare choices. It funds comparative clinical effectiveness research (CER), which compares two or more medical treatments, services, or health practices to help patients and other stakeholders make better informed decisions. The PCORI Strategic Plan provides a roadmap for its activities in the years ahead as they pursue their vision and mission. Developed with extensive stakeholder input, the Plan articulates a refined focus on generating patient-centered evidence that has the greatest positive impact on health outcomes.
