Journal of healthcare risk management : the journal of the American Society for Healthcare Risk Management
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J Healthc Risk Manag · Jan 2010
Implementation of a patient-friendly medication schedule to improve patient safety within a healthcare system.
Preventable adverse drug events have a direct impact on the well-being of patients. The creation and implementation of a patient-friendly daily medication schedule improved the way care is delivered at Memorial Healthcare System. ⋯ This tool enhances communication with patients and family members and enables patients to better understand the medications they receive while hospitalized. An additional welcomed byproduct is the prevention of potential medication errors.
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J Healthc Risk Manag · Jan 2009
Leaving against medical advice: facing the issue in the emergency department.
Patients leaving the emergency department (ED) against medical advice (AMA) represent 0.1% to 2.7% of all ED patients. These patients create significant angst for emergency physicians because these patients frequently have serious underlying medical pathology and tend to represent a higher-than-average source of medical-legal liability than other ED patients. This article attempts to mitigate these risks by reviewing what we know about AMA encounters from the ED and providing documentation guidelines for the encounter.
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Patient handoffs come in many forms, some of which are permanent (the provider will not get the patient back) and some of which are temporary (the provider will get the patient back). The danger inherent in temporary handoffs is that the temporary provider will not have sufficient information, or will not have time to gather the necessary information, to provide care for the patient safely. The "ticket-to-ride" tool, in addition to the verbal handoff communication, can be used to provide temporary providers of care with a salient synopsis of the patient's condition to protect the patient during an absence from the floor or unit. This article gives guidance on the development of a ticket-to-ride form.