Patient Safety Awareness continues to evolve at Naval Hospital Bremerton

Photo By Douglas Stutz | Naval Hospital Bremerton's annual recognition of National Patient Safety Awareness Week went back in history 65 million years to prove a point. The dinosaur age is a historical example of extinction due, but not so patient safety which continues to evolve. NHB staff, as well as patients and visitors, had the opportunity to examine the noted differences between extinct and evolve at the command's Patient Safety Awareness Week display on the Quarterdeck all week (Official Navy photo by Douglas H Stutz, Naval Hospital Bremerton Public Affairs).  

BREMERTON , WA, UNITED STATES

03.16.2018

Story by Douglas Stutz    

Naval Hospital Bremerton/Navy Medicine Readiness and Training Command Bremerton

Naval Hospital Bremerton’s (NHB) annual recognition of National Patient Safety Awareness Week went back in history 65 million years to prove a point.

The dinosaur age is a historical example of extinction due, but not so patient safety which continues to evolve.

NHB staff, as well as patients and visitors, had the opportunity to examine the noted differences between what’s extinct and what continues to evolve at the command’s Patient Safety Awareness Week display on the Quarterdeck all week.

“We get this one week out of the year to not only celebrate our advances in patient safety but to shine the light on some of the critical tools and techniques we use to keep everyone safe while visiting our facility,” said Cmdr. Kevin Burns, Quality Management Department head.

For Mayda Schaefer, NHB patient safety analyst and prime architect of the display, the week is an annual education and appreciation campaign for healthcare safety endorsed by the National Patient Safety Foundation.

“Everyone in our health care process plays a role in delivering safe care. By uniting together and sharing that common goal, we can make a difference in patient safety,” Schaefer said, also noting that various process improvement projects were submitted by various clinics, departments and directorates as another example of staff grasping the importance of the week.

NHB’s visually appealing display has annually provided colorful explanations in describing specific patient safety tips such as the importance of hand hygiene.

Despite widespread knowledge that handwashing helps prevent the spread of germs, studies have shown only 31 percent of men and 65 percent of women wash their hands after using a public restroom. There are perceived barriers as to why the percentages are what they are. The top three excuses most often given are that sinks are difficult to reach, people simply forget, and that there’s not enough time.

Patient safety improvement benchmarks such as improving the accuracy of patient identification by always using at least two ways to identify patients were exhibited with a prehistoric past twist.

Viewers were shown two extinct dinosaur species, stegoceras and stegosaurus – both similar in name and spelling – and easily mistaken for the other. Along with trying to perceive the difference between comparable names, also consider the sentence, ‘yuo cna porbalby raed tihs desptie teh msispeillgns.’

It is thought that part of the reason the previous wording is readable is because the human brain is able to use context to make predictions about what is to come. People read words as whole units, not letter-by-letter, which is one reason using two patient identifiers when providing care, treatment, or service is needed for accuracy. At NHB, a patient’s full name and date of birth is used to positively identify a patient.

Medication errors remain a constant source of patient safety awareness. A medication error is when a patient receives the wrong medication, or when they receive the right medication, but in the wrong dose or manner. Improving the safety of administering and using medications are current National Patient Safety goals that benefit from staff and patients awareness.

“Our staff at NHB take patient safety very seriously. We take every precaution to ensure patients get the correct medication, in the correct dose and the correct manner. Patients are reminded that if they have any questions regarding their medications, they should immediately ask one of our pharmacists or health care providers. We want to know,” said Schaefer.

“Our patients are a force multiplier. They see patient care through a different lenses. They communicate things that we may not consider unsafe. I think the single most important focus on patient safety is educating our patients so they can support us,” added Burns.

It doesn’t take a dinosaur – or patient - to know that continuing the evolution process for patient safety awareness beats the extinction alternative every time.

• Date Taken: 03.16.2018
• Date Posted: 03.16.2018 18:07
• Story ID: 269734
• Location: BREMERTON , WA, US