What Is Your Patient Safety IQ?

It's been more than ten years since the Institute of Medicine published To Err Is Human, their much publicized report that estimated as many as 98,000 Americans die each year from preventable medical errors. Since then, according to recent article in the journal Quality and Safety in Health Care, "efforts to improve patient safety have proliferated but progress toward improvement has been frustratingly slow" 

The authors—who are safety experts from some of the most prestigious healthcare organizations in the country: Harvard Medical School, Institute for Healthcare Improvement, Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, National Patient Safety Foundation, Consumers Union, Kaiser Foundation, Vanderbilt University Medical Center—propose five concepts for transformation of care:

• Transparency—free, uninhibited sharing of information about hazards, errors and adverse events
• Integrated care platform—evidence-based, patient-centered care across all venues: inpatient, outpatient, and residential
• Consumer engagement—"Nothing About Me Without Me"
• Joy and meaning in work—caregivers cannot meet challenges unless they feel valued 
• Medical education reform—greater emphasis on information management, basic concepts of human interaction, patient safety, etc. 

Their vision for consumer engagement is encouraging:

"We envisage patients as essential and respected partners in their own care and in the design and execution of all aspects of healthcare. In this new world of healthcare:

Organizations publicly and consistently affirm the centrality of patient- and family-centered care. They seek out patients, listen to them, hear their stories, are open and honest with them, and take action with them.

The family is respected as part of the care team—never visitors—in every area of the hospital, including the emergency department and the intensive care unit.

Patients share fully in decision-making and are guided on how to self-manage, partner with their clinicians and develop their own care plans. They are spoken to in a way they can understand and are empowered to be in control of their care."

Feeling inspired? Test your knowledge of patient safety by participating in a brief survey and as a bonus you will be entered in a drawing for one of 20 copies of You the Smart Patient or the just published The Smart Parent's Guide to Getting Your Kids Through Illnesses, Accidents, Checkups: http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/Patient_IQ_Quiz

The answers provide links to the Joint Commission's Speak Up series of brief, easy-to-read brochures about how you can protect yourself and your family against healthcare errors by taking an active, informed role in your care. Brochures are available in English and Spanish. 


Access pdfs of the full series at http://www.jointcommission.org/PatientSafety/SpeakUp/


Reference


Leape L, Berwick D, Clancy C, et al. Transforming healthcare: a safety imperative. Qual Saf Health Care 2009;18:424-428. Accessed 3/18/10 at http://qshc.bmj.com/content/18/6/424.htm