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.
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.
Las Vegas Healthcare Workers Faced Impossible Horrors, But Still Pulled Through
“We are in an environment where underlying violence is considered acceptable. We are expected not only to survive, but turn right around, respond, and treat casualties.”
Nurse’s Stabbing Prompts ED Security Changes
Harrington’s workforce will undergo additional training in de-escalation techniques and defensive tactics, and public safety officers will be armed with batons, foam-based pepper spray, and handcuffs.
TX Hospitals Shutter as Harvey Batters Houston
Hurricane Harvey unleashes catastrophic flooding, forcing some healthcare providers to shut down and evacuate patients.
The Case for Creating A Culture of Caregiver Support
Organizations are developing “second victim” programs to provide care for the caregivers—programs specifically focused on helping healthcare workers recover from trauma.
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.
Bit, Kicked, And Hit
More than 70% of significant WPV injuries occur in healthcare and social service settings. That number has been on the rise, and the victims are primarily healthcare workers, according to the International Association for Healthcare Security and Safety Foundation.
Three Keys to Preventing Workplace Violence
This article originally appeared in the June issue of Patient Safety Monitor Jounal. This spring, Ann Scott Blouin, RN, PhD, FACHE, executive vice president of The Joint Commission, wrote a blog post detailing the need for a practical approach to healthcare’s endemic workplace violence (WPV) problem. In 2013, more than 70% of the 23,000 significant … Continued
Worker Wellness: Fatigue and Burnout
They say your home isn’t safe without a strong foundation. Likewise, your car isn’t safe without good tires.
The same cliché can apply to your healthcare workplace. Without strong, healthy, happy, and well-rested healthcare professionals working for you, your clinic just isn’t as safe a place as it could be.