Editor’s note: NPSG.06.01.01 was approved by The Joint Commission in June 2013 as a new 2014 National Patient Safety Goal. The final standard includes two phases: Phase I, beginning January 2014, requires hospital leaders to establish alarm system safety as a hospital priority by...
When it comes to medication reconciliation (also known as “med rec”), accuracy is everything. Having an effective process in place ensures each patient’s medication is accurately recorded and avoids inconsistencies or potential errors throughout each transition of care.
In 2011, some of the hospitals within Adventist Health System (AHS), headquartered in Altamonte Springs, Fla., embarked on mortality reviews for patients in their EDs—and didn’t like what they saw.
Improving patient handoffs has long been on the radar of hospitals and health systems. As healthcare has become more specialized, handoffs occur more frequently and carry even greater importance. Ineffective handoffs can have serious implications on patient care and safety....
Editor's note: Culture Club is a new Patient Safety Monitor Journal feature that focuses on how combining safety efforts creates a more effective overall culture of safety.
In 2010, staff at Cooley Dickinson Hospital in Northampton, Mass., started to become interested in new UV light technology as a possibility to help reduce infections. Although the hospital had lower than average infection rates, infection control staff were having trouble...
It's time again for the annual Patient Safety Awareness Week (PSAW), an annual education and awareness campaign for healthcare safety led by the National Patient Safety Foundation (NPSF) that began in 2002.
