Hospital Patient Safety: A Unified Approach

In between adjusting to Daylight Savings Time and recognizing St. Patrick’s Day, healthcare professionals throughout the country are taking time this week to increase awareness and learn more about the importance of increasing the safe care of patients.

(VIDEO: Thinh H. Tran, M.D., MBA, chief medical and quality officer and corporate vice president at Baptist Health South Florida, talks about the important role a unified partnership between healthcare professionals and their patients plays in keeping healthcare experiences safe.)

Patient Safety Awareness Week, March 13-19, is an initiative of the National Patient Safety Foundation (NPSF). It encourages healthcare organizations to participate in patient safety-related activities that highlight actions being taken to identify and address opportunities that improve safety issues common to healthcare settings across the U.S.

“Informing patients and their family members about efforts taken to ensure their safety helps create a strong partnership with caregivers to foster optimal healthcare experiences,” says Thinh H. Tran, M.D., MBA, chief medical officer and corporate vice president at Baptist Health South Florida. “At some point we will all be a patient, and as healthcare leaders it’s our responsibility to work together with our communities to prevent harm.”

With the guidance of data-driven standards and benchmarks set forth by safety and quality organizations in the U.S., such as The Leapfrog Group, healthcare organizations that consistently demonstrate the ability to prevent errors, accidents, injuries and infections are recognized as patient safety leaders, such as Baptist Health. The organization receives high marks from agencies that measure and publicly report patient outcomes for implementing innovative strategies to keep its hospitals and outpatient settings safe.

Some of the patient safety initiatives used at Baptist Health include bar-coded wristbands to prevent medication erros, having surgeons and operating room staff take a “time out” to verify the correct surgery site and a “Code Help” patients can call to bring caregivers to their bedside. In addition, more than 100 community members serve as “patient advisors” to provide the perspective of the patient and what their needs are to organization leaders. The input and feedback is used to develop and refine safety policies and protocols.

The Baptist Health News Team spoke with Dr. Tran to learn more. Watch the video now.