Creating a Culture of Patient Safety: Patient Safety Executive Rounds

Sampson, Theresa

Sunday, April 14, 2013: 9:20 AM

Dana Bjarnason, PhD, RN, NE-BC¹
Angelica Ozaeta, MSN, RN, CPHQ¹
Theresa Sampson, MSN, RN, CNS-CC²
(1)Ben Taub General Hospital/Quentin Mease Community Hospital, Harris Health System, Houston, TX
(2)Ben Taub General Hospital - Trauma Intensive Care, Harris Health System, Houston, TX

Learning Objective 1: Describe an interdisciplinary process for developing solutions and achieving desirable outcomes regarding point of service patient safety concerns.

Learning Objective 2: Identify an intervention that advances collaborative relationships while allowing administrators, nurse leaders and the patient care to explore all relevant patient safety perspectives.

As the acuity and complexity of patient care have increased, the challenge of providing quality care within the context of a safe patient environment has become a point of concern. At our institution, inculcating a culture of patient safety has been a core mission of hospital leadership over the past five years. Noteworthy improvements were apparent relative to reporting significant incidences, as well as in data collection, analysis, intervention and monitoring procedures. It was clear that through our formal processes including audits and focused rounding, substantial changes were occurring. However, hospital leadership continued to feel that there was a gap between direct care providers and administration and that therefore we were missing opportunities to effect even more positive change and an even safer patient care environment. A challenge was made by the administrator and the chief nursing officer, directing the director of quality and patient safety to develop a recommendation to bring these two entities together.

The result was an innovative, proactive strategy that has been implemented in three of the hospital’s busiest and highest acuity patient care areas. The approach exemplifies the organization’s commitment to building a culture of patient safety through shared leadership, accountability, rapid cycle solutions and measurable outcomes. The PSER concept was adapted from the Institute of Healthcare Improvement and The University of Michigan Hospitals and Health Centers and was developed and implemented to demonstrate the organization's commitment to building a culture of safety and to provide opportunities for senior executives to learn about patient safety concerns at the point of care.

The program is a highly interactive and engaging six to eight week process that promotes interdisciplinary team feedback about patient safety concerns through multiple venues with the goal of fueling the team's desire to be active participants in creating a culture of patient safety.

See more of: CLINICAL SESSION: Communication Strategies for Improving Patient Outcomes
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