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Personal conflicts are inevitable among co-workers. So why should a risk manager get involved? Consider the following examples of how those conflicts directly affected patient safety. These are real responses to a confidential survey.
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Many of the confidential comments from the VHA study concerning disruptive behavior concerned nurses who were afraid to call physicians at home because they knew the doctor would be angry. But thats not always because the doctor is a jerk, researchers say.
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Detail always is good. More detail always is better. Thats the rule of thumb when it comes to documentation, according to a medical malpractice defense attorney with Meagher & Geer in Minneapolis.
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Educating your staff is an ongoing challenge, but one hospital has found that patient safety packets with practical, goal-oriented information can be especially effective in helping reduce falls and other hazards.
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A feeding tube was improperly inserted into a minister who was recovering from surgery. This led to an extended hospitalization and post discharge vocal cord and lung problems. At trial, he was awarded $70,000, and his wife $30,000, a total verdict of $100,000.
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A man suffering from a blockage in the main artery of his leg underwent femoral bypass surgery at a local hospital. Although he suffered from a disease causing a reduction in his normal blood flow, medical staff failed to determine whether the mans underlying condition would prevent him from undergoing surgery. After surgery, the nursing staff inadvertently administered 10 times the amount of heparin ordered, which caused him to bleed excessively. During a second procedure to determine the cause of the bleeding, the nursing staff administered a toxic dose of heparin, and the man died soon thereafter. After filing suit, the plaintiff settled with the hospital and physicians for $2.5 million.
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Jay Wolfson, DrPH, JD, professor of health care law, finance, and policy at the Colleges of Public Health and Medicine at the University of South Florida in Tampa, offers this advice on how to counter not-for-profit lawsuits and avoid becoming a target for similar allegations.
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Some hospitals targeted by the spate of lawsuits against charity health care providers are fighting back, and one hospital executive tells Healthcare Risk Management that he expects the legal brouhaha to die out soon without any major payouts.
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Patient-controlled analgesia is a well-accepted method of delivering pain relief, but JCAHO is warning that well-intended family members and caregivers may be putting patients at risk by becoming involved in administering patient-controlled analgesia.
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A back door or any door not within sight of your staff and intended for the public to use always poses a risk, says the president of the International Association for Healthcare Security and Safety in Glendale Heights, IL.
