Tag: Patient Safety

Sounding the Alarm on Alarm Fatigue

by Gina Pugliese (Vice President, Premier Safety Institute)

(Editor’s note: Gina Pugliese recently joined the Physician-Patient Alliance for Health & Safety advisory board. We are pleased and honored to have her expertise and counsel.)

Alarms are a serious matter in busy hospitals and ERs.

Think about all of the devices used in patient care – infusion pumps, cardiac monitors, pulse oximetry devices, blood pressure monitors, bedside telemetry and ventilators. All of these devices have alarms. Collectively, the devices in use on a single patient can produce hundreds of alarms every day. Some alarms are inconsequential. Some are malfunctions. Others signal impending crisis. Many are simply not heard.

Continue reading “Sounding the Alarm on Alarm Fatigue” →

8 overlooked ways to improve patient safety

Fierce Healthcare recently reported on the Physician-Patient Alliance for Health & Safety presentation at this year’s AORN annual conference.

As Fierce Healthcare reported:

When it comes to patient safety, it’s essential for nurses and staff to properly manage and monitor patients receiving opioids, field leaders said.

Continue reading “8 overlooked ways to improve patient safety” →

PPAHS Joins Anesthesia Patient Safety Foundation in Call for a “Paradigm Shift” in Opioid Safety

by Sean Power
February 19, 2014

“It’s time for a change in how we monitor postoperative patients receiving opioids,” declares Dr. Robert Stoelting, president of the Anesthesia Patient Safety Foundation (APSF). “We need a complete paradigm shift in how we approach safer care for postoperative patients receiving opioids.” Continue reading “PPAHS Joins Anesthesia Patient Safety Foundation in Call for a “Paradigm Shift” in Opioid Safety” →

“No patients are low risk” when it comes to cesarean delivery and venous thromboembolism, says perinatal expert Dr. Peter Cherouny

by Sean Power
February 4, 2014

The Institute for Healthcare Improvement (IHI) held on January 22, 2014 a special webinar for the Perinatal Improvement Community on safety recommendations for maternal patients. You can download the webinar recording and slides here.

The webinar featured Peter Cherouny, MD, Emeritus Professor, Obstetrics, Gynecology, and Reproductive Sciences, University of Vermont, Chair and Lead Faculty of the IHI Perinatal Improvement Community and Michael Wong, JD, Executive Director of the Physician-Patient Alliance for Health and Safety (PPAHS).

Maternal death rate in the USA has more than doubled in the last 25 years and data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) show that pregnancy-related mortality is rising in the United States. Continue reading ““No patients are low risk” when it comes to cesarean delivery and venous thromboembolism, says perinatal expert Dr. Peter Cherouny” →

Reliability: The Next Frontier in Patient Safety

by Dev Raheja, MS, CSP

Author: Safer Hospital Care

Reliability is the next frontier in patient safety according to Dr. Carolyn Clancy, the former Director of the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) and current Assistant Deputy Undersecretary for Health, Quality, Safety and Value, veterans Health Administration. She gave this message as a keynote speaker at the Sixth Annual Forum and Gala of the Lucian Leape Institute of the National Patient Safety Foundation, held in Boston on September 12, 2013. Continue reading “Reliability: The Next Frontier in Patient Safety” →

INFOGRAPHIC: First National Survey of Patient-Controlled Analgesia Practices

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New National Survey Finds Patient Safety at Risk Because of Lack of Consistency in Hospital Patient-Controlled Analgesia Practices

Inconsistency in safe practices most likely accounts for large proportion of adverse events and deaths associated with PCA use, says Physician-Patient Alliance for Health and Safety.

The Physician-Patient Alliance for Health and Safety today released the results from a national survey of United States hospitals on the administration of patient-controlled analgesia (PCA). Continue reading “New National Survey Finds Patient Safety at Risk Because of Lack of Consistency in Hospital Patient-Controlled Analgesia Practices” →

Greater Monitoring and Nursing Resources Improve Patient Safety

by Sean Power and Michael Wong

In May 2013, Congresswoman Jan Schakowsky reintroduced the Nurse Staffing Standards for Patient Safety and Quality Care Act. The proposed bill mandates minimum nurse-to-patient ratios at hospitals across the country. Continue reading “Greater Monitoring and Nursing Resources Improve Patient Safety” →

3 Ways Technology Can Help Nurses Spend More Time at Patients’ Bedside

(This article first published on Advance for Nurses, where “millions of nursing, rehab and allied health professionals” turn to for “a trustworthy source of industry news and information”. That publication has been discontinued. We have replaced an excerpt with the full article below.)

The current hospital-patient care environment does not allow nurses to spend their time where they are needed most, at the patients’ bedside. A time and motion study of 767 medical-surgical nurses in 36 hospitals found that only 7.2% of their time (31 minutes during a typical 10 hour shift) is spent with the patient performing tasks, such as assessing the patient and reading vital signs. During a 10 hour shift, the study found that nurses’ time was spent in numerous activities, as shown in the chart below: Continue reading “3 Ways Technology Can Help Nurses Spend More Time at Patients’ Bedside” →

Physician-Patient Alliance for Health & Safety Announces Four Essentials for Safety for Patients Receiving Opioids

The Physician-Patient Alliance for Health & Safety (PPAHS), an advocacy group of physicians, nurses, respiratory therapists, healthcare organizations and patient safety advocacy groups, recently released four essentials for patient safety. Continue reading “Physician-Patient Alliance for Health & Safety Announces Four Essentials for Safety for Patients Receiving Opioids” →