Nursing standard (Royal College of Nursing (Great Britain) : 1987)
-
Patients with major burns require specialist care in burn centres, taking into account the complex systemic response to a burn injury, avoidance of complications, specialist wound care and supportive multidisciplinary management. Occasionally, these patients may be managed in other settings, such as emergency departments or general intensive care units and ward areas, for example after an explosion or major disaster. Therefore, general nurses require an understanding of patients' complex needs, and should be aware of the latest developments in burn care and up-to-date evidence to ensure best practice.
-
This article explores the commonly held belief that nurses are to blame for the high rate of medication administration errors in health care. The article argues for a need to move away from a culture of blame and to consider changes to medicine and the increasing complexity of administration as potential reasons for error. Medicine administration should be viewed within the wider context of health care rather than as an isolated process in order to develop effective solutions to reduce medicine-related errors.
-
This article explores the links between organisational culture and patient safety. The key elements associated with a safety culture, most notably effective leadership, good teamwork, a culture of learning and fairness, and fostering patient-centred care, are discussed. The broader aspects of a systems approach to promoting quality and safety, with specific reference to clinical governance, human factors, and ergonomics principles and methods, are also briefly explored, particularly in light of the report of the public inquiry into care failings at Mid Staffordshire NHS Foundation Trust.