True or false: It is permissable to use standing orders or PRN orders for the initiation of restraint on a unit to avoid contacting the physician to initiate the restraint or seclusion.
The Joint Commission’s Speak Up ™ campaign has launched the second in a series of animated shorts aimed at helping patients and their families advocate for safe practices during their care. The latest short targets infection control, specifically hand hygiene.
Patient falls are one of the most common adverse events in a hospital setting, making them an easy target for indifference after a while. But when staff at Saddleback Memorial Medical Center, a 325-bed hospital in Laguna Hills, CA, noticed a spike in its patient fall rate during...
Physicians and nurses learn their practices in different schools. Their schedules are different, and sometimes, it seems their priorities are also different. It can be hard to get along. But they truly have one common goal in mind: great patient care.
How humbling it is to shadow the steps of our frontline caregivers. Previously in this column, I've mentioned the incredible value in slipping into a pair of scrubs and spending time shoulder-to-shoulder with clinicians and care teams. As I continue to conduct nursing research for...
True or false: Pre-procedure verification is an ongoing process where information is gathered prior to a procedure occuring. That information is used to confirm that you have the right patient, the right procedure, and right site.
Patient Safety Awareness Week is coming up and the National Patient Safety Foundation (NPSF) is extending its toolkits, aimed at cultural competency and reducing readmission rates, to all healthcare organizations. In years past, the NPSF–which is the founding sponsor of Patient Safety...
Beep. Beep. Beep. The telltale noise of a hospital is the bleeps, the sweeps, and the creeps of the many machines hospital patients are hooked up to during their stay. These machines have alarms—as many as 400 per patient—and many are important. They alert staff if a patient needs immediate...
