Overview of Quality in Health Care

Overview of Quality in Health Care

The primary role of patient safety is to reduce and prevent perils, errors, and maltreatment that may occur to patients during healthcare provision. In the US, the leading cause of death is medical errors. Unmasking and providing a consistent, viable solution to medical mistakes is challenging (Zhang et al., 2019). However, the government can enhance patient safety by distinguishing untoward events, learning from them, and implementing preventive measures to reduce occurrence rates. The purpose of this paper is to discuss medical errors as a safety concern in health care delivery.

The Issues and Associated Challenges

Medical errors are a serious public health problem that has been a leading cause of death in the US and other parts of the world. The challenge always exists in uncovering a consistent cause of the medical error. Besides, even if a consistent cause of the error is found, providing a viable solution always remains a challenge (Assiri et al., 2018). Health care professionals are human beings who are also prone to errors because they experience psychological effects such as depression, anger, and suicidal thoughts because of the perceived errors (Menon et al., 2020). The fear of punishment always makes these healthcare professionals refrain from reporting the errors making these errors persistent in health care delivery.

The increasing cases of medical errors in outpatient settings result from risky behaviors by healthcare workers. Most outpatient care providers lack time and resources for patient safety efforts. The risk behavior includes not double-checking high alert medications before dispensing and failure to check important patient information such as allergies, weight, and co-morbid conditions (Assiri et al., 2018). Medication errors also arise due to the failure to educate patients on the rational use of medications. Secondly, government efforts on patients’ safety are not relevant to outpatient care since they focus more on hospital issues (Assiri et al., 2018). Successful implementation of outpatient safety strategies requires the federal government to come up with clear policies regarding outpatients’ services and ensure outpatient health providers are skilled and with adequate resources to guarantee patient safety.

How EBP, Research, and QI would be Utilized to Address the Issue

Federal initiatives aim at improving patient safety by ratifying measures that can increase accountability among health care professionals. For instance, one of the federal initiatives implemented to prevent accidental death due to medication errors is TeamSTEPPS. It is an evidence-based practice whose primary objective is to improve the performance of health experts by enabling them to respond promptly and effectively in different situations (Tore et al., 2021). TeamSTEPPS program emphasizes four skills: communication, leadership, situation monitoring, and mutual support to improve team performance. The tools are one of the powerful tools used in developing evidence-based teamwork to improve communication among healthcare professionals. Increased human errors always arise from the communication system in healthcare. A delay in communication among professionals is enough to cause a patient’s life in health care centers. Therefore, TeamSTEPPS provides increased safety and quality of patient care by eliminating a barrier to safety and quality.

Research done on medical errors has been effective in solving the problem partially. The dynamic nature of the problem has been affecting the researcher’s ability to find a long-lasting solution for the problem. However, numerous scholars have contended that maintaining a culture that works towards realizing safety issues and ratifying viable solutions is significant in solving the issue of medical errors in healthcare. The culture of safety does not compare to that culture harboring blame, punishment, and shame (Assiri et al., 2018). The health care society needs to develop a culture of safety where both patients and nurses feel safe. Besides, the culture of safety would also focus on a system of improvement by viewing medical errors as challenges that can be approached and solved in a better and more effective manner. All healthcare professionals need to play a major role in making healthcare safe for patients and healthcare workers. Self-discipline and patience among health care workersare important in developing a strong professional team that effectively approaches a problem in solving medical errors.

Heightening the application of technology in health care is a quality improvement measure that plays a significantrole in reducing medical errors in healthcare. Before the intenseapplication of technology in healthcare, human errors were at their pinnacle as compared to the generation of technology (Zhang et al., 2019). For instance, modern healthcare technology comes with improved communication and automation of systems that limit health care professionals from making errors that can cost patients’ lives. Improving electronic medical records documentation through the EHR systems is important in limiting confusion of particular medication offered to patients (Billstein-Leber et al., 2018). Besides, it augments professional communication, allowing nurses and physicians to dispense their healthcare duties with minimal errors. The increased medical errors in healthcare institutions pave the way for constructive changes aligning with the current technology to increase quality and safety in healthcare.

QI Process Chosen

Incorporating the PDSA model as Quality Improvement (QI) for solving the issue of medical errors would be important increasing patient safety. The model is the shorthand meant to test the planned change, carry out the tests, observe and learn from the consequence, and determine the required modification that would effectively solve the proposed problem. The reason for choosing the PSDA model as a QI process is that it can test a proposed change (Leis & Shojania, 2017). The issues of medical errors are dynamic, implying that a measure taken now to solve the problem might not be effective after one or two years. This calls for the need to test changes and make improvements where necessary. Each of the proposed changes in healthcare would be subjected to the PDSA cycles that would aid in ascertaining their ability to solve the problem of medical errors in healthcare. Therefore, the model is important in ensuring that the planned change positively affects the quality of health care.

Data Sources for Outcome and Process

Administrative data and nurse surveys are the main sources of data for unveiling the extent of medical errors in health care. The need to protect health care professionals and the management of health care institutions does not allow them to record the cause of death of a patient as caused by medical error. Therefore, patient medical records might not unveil the exact data that would be important in solving the issue (Zhang et al., 2019). The data on the outcome process on the medical errors’ interventions would come from the nurse surveys as the nurses would table their experience about these errors in the past. The nurse surveys would as well be important in realizing the current state of the problem and how the problem might change in the future. The process data would also come from administrative data. This data would show some of the past cases of errors that the health care system has been dealing with in the past (Zhang et al., 2019). Besides, they outline the past measures that were taken to ensure that medical errors reduce among healthcare professionals.

Capturing and Dissemination of Data

The collected information from the questionnaires from the nurses and the administration would be done through an online survey. The online survey allows responses to be transmitted electronically. Besides, the electronically transmitted data would allow easy comparison and development of a particular trend (Tore et al., 2021).Electronic capturing and disseminating data is easier, thus reducing research time and selecting effective measures to reduce falls among patients. Moreover, capturing data from nurses and other professionals through an online system reduces the survey time and provides the professional with a better time to participate in the survey as they are offered in their free time.

Organizational Culture Considerations will be Essential to the Success of the Work

Confidentiality among the nurses and other healthcare professionals is one of the organizational cultures that would be important in addressing the issue. The clinic or management of healthcare institutions might be afraid to provide data on human error, and thus, they have to ensure effective confidentiality when giving such information. Trust developed among health care professionals, and administration would be important in solving issues of medical errors as they would be better placed in developing and implementing effective options that solve the issue (Tore et al., 2021). The connection between healthcare workers is also important in learning cultural competencies that aid in improving health care outcomes among patients with a high risk of falling.

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Conclusion

Medical errors are a serious issue in healthcare delivery, but they have an effective solution. The combination of research leads to the development of new evidence-based practices that improve quality and safety in healthcare. Intense testing of procedures that can lead to error reduction in health care is one of the effective ways to meet the ultimate solution of the problem.

References

Assiri, G. A., Shebl, N. A., Mahmoud, M. A., Aloudah, N., Grant, E., Aljadhey, H., & Sheikh, A. (2018). What is the epidemiology of medication errors, error-related adverse events and risk factors for errors in adults managed in community care contexts? A systematic review of the international literature. BMJ open, 8(5), e019101.http://dx.doi.org/10.1136/bmjopen-2017-019101.

Billstein-Leber, M., Carrillo, C. J. D., Cassano, A. T., Moline, K., & Robertson, J. J. (2018). ASHP guidelines on preventing medication errors in hospitals. American Journal of Health-System Pharmacy, 75(19), 1493-1517.DOI 10.2146/ajhp170811

Leis, J. A., & Shojania, K. G. (2017). A primer on PDSA: executing plan–do–study–act cycles in practice, not just in name. BMJ quality & safety, 26(7), 572-577.http://dx.doi.org/10.1136/bmjqs-2016-006245.

Menon, N. K., Shanafelt, T. D., Sinsky, C. A., Linzer, M., Carlasare, L., Brady, K. J., … & Trockel, M. T. (2020). Association of physician burnout with suicidal ideation and medical errors. JAMA network open, 3(12), e2028780-e2028780.Doi:10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2020.28780

Tore, K., Hall-Lord, M. L., Wangensteen, S., & Ballangrud, R. (2021). Bachelor of nursing students’ attitudes toward teamwork in healthcare: The impact of implementing a teamSTEPPS® team training program—A longitudinal, quasi-experimental study. Nurse Education Today, 105180.https://doi.org/10.1016/j.nedt.2021.105180

Zhang, X., Li, Q., Guo, Y., & Lee, S. Y. (2019). From organisational support to second victim‐related distress: Role of patient safety culture. Journal of nursing management, 27(8), 1818-1825. https://doi.org/10.1111/jonm.12881

The purpose of this assignment is to apply the concepts you have learned in this course to a situation you have encountered. Choose one quality or patient safety concern with which you are familiar and that you have not yet discussed in this course. In a 1,250-1,500-word essay, reflect on what you have learned in this course by applying the concepts to the quality or patient safety concern you have selected. Include the following in your essay:

Briefly describe the issue and associated challenges.

Explain how EBP, research, and PI would be utilized to address the issue.

Explain the PI or QI process you would apply and discuss why you chose it.

Describe your data sources, including outcome and process data.

Explain how the data will be captured and disseminated.

Discuss which organizational culture considerations will be essential to the success of your work. This assignment uses a rubric.

Use a minimum of six peer-reviewed, scholarly sources as evidence.

Prepare this assignment according to the guidelines found in the APA 7th EDITION Style Guide, located in the Student Success Center.

This assignment uses a rubric. Please review the rubric prior to beginning the assignment to become familiar with the expectations for successful completion.

You are required to submit this assignment to LopesWrite. A link to the LopesWrite technical support articles is located in Class Resources if you need assistance.