I feel like my job as a nurse would be to make sure that no errors occur, and that the patient is safe at all times. When researching my topic, I learned that a lot of patients in the hospital die due to medical errors. I also learned that a lot of injuries occur among hospitalized older adults due to safety related issues. I think it’s sad that many people are being harmed and losing their life all because of something that could have been prevented. Patient safety is a huge issue that should never be overlooked.
Rights of Medication Safety Medication plays a key role in healthcare but can also be an important key cause of medical error. Patients are entitled to receive safe care including receiving the correct medications. The administration of medication is a daily routine for nurses therefore, it is vital to remember the “Five Rights” of medication safety. Many different things can go wrong when it comes to the administering medication, for example communication between the patient and the nurse could go wrong, or the labeling of the medication, even the dosage can cause improper usage of the drug. The question is what role do nurses play when it comes to medication safety?
a pilot study by the National Nursing research unit, at King’s College london, has shown that interruptions are contextually dependent on ward layout, patient care, trust or ward protocols and the seniority of the nurses undertaking the tasks involved. interruptions affect staff cognitively by interfering with working memory, causing lack of focus (Potter et al 2005) and invoking feelings of frustration and stress. however, it must be noted that interruptions in healthcare settings may sometimes be essential to good staff communication so that harm and error can be minimised or eradicated. 22 February 2010 | Volume 16 | Number 9 The evidence of the contribution to medication administration errors of interruptions to nurses’ work examined by the authors included systematic
Are Patients Safe James E. Scarbrough III Baker College of Cadillac Are Patients Safe Patient safety is an extremely valuable aspect in the health care. The definition of patient safety is an area focusing on reporting an error, analysis and prevention of medical errors that often lead to adverse patient outcomes. Prevention means keeping patients safe from errors rather than reacting to them. These standards in patient safety inspire the most challenging issues in the health care setting. Reviewing these standards annually and publishing them on The Joint Commission Website, it is a key component to improving health care (The Joint Commission, 2011).
Nursing students increasingly encounter ethical problems during their clinical practice which sometimes infringe the rights of patients. Simply put, ethical issues are a major concern in the healthcare field because healthcare providers have to make ethical decisions on a daily basis. Working in the modern world as a newly developed registered nurse, one can face many hurdles as they come upon their new work environment. While trying to grasp this major transition, nurses can often find themselves in the mist of ethical dilemmas. There are, in some cases, policies of the healthcare institutions and the nurse’s personal professional ethics that can conflict with the clinical settings’ decision making.
There are three reasons proper chart documentations are important: to avoid lawsuits, keep accurate medical information for patient, and to maintain proper communication from one professional to another. Avoiding Malpractice Suits People sue for a lot of reasons today, and one of them just happens to be improper charting that causes errors. Attorneys on the plaintiff side gather every chart and record that was made during the time in question. The proper chart documentation can either be the nail in the coffin for a case, or the factor that decides wrong doing and monetary compensation. It is imperative that documentation is done thoroughly and properly every time data is recorded.
The critical care nurse plays a vital role in the withdrawal of life support because they are present at the bedside more than any other team member of the health care team and are responsible for carrying out physician’s orders to withdraw artificial support (Kirchhoff & Kowalkowski, 2010). However, ethical and legal conflicts may occur, when there is not a mutual agreement between the physician and patient or (and) family members regarding withdrawal of life support. It is the nurse’s role and obligation to facilitate discussion among the patient and family members when conflicts evolve. Therefore, it is imperative that the nurses have moral courage and have ethical humility to resolve conflicts, to assist the patient or family members, to make informed end of life decisions when death appears evitable. Hypothetical patient scenario Mr. Brown is an 89 year old male patient who has been recently diagnosed with advanced pancreatic cancer with metastasis to the
Medication Errors Jessicka Haynes Nursing Roles 1 Professor Byndom April 10, 2013 Medication Errors It is true; we all are human and we all do make errors, but there are certain errors that are life threatening such as medication errors. Medical errors can be defined as the failure of planned action to be completed as intended or the use of a wrong plan to achieve an aim. (Poillon, 1999) Among the problems that commonly occur during the course of providing health care are adverse drug events and improper transfusions, surgical injuries and wrong-site surgery, suicides, restraint-related injuries or death, falls, burns, pressure ulcers, and mistaken patient identities. (Poillon, 1999) High error rates with serious consequences
Abstract Medication errors are a significant issue affecting patient safety and costs in hospitals often posing dangerous consequences for patients. It is important to understand that analysis of medication errors can help healthcare professionals and managers identify why medication errors occurs and provide insight into how to make improvements to prevent or reduce them. There are several types of medication errors such as wrong dosage, wrong patient, wrong route, wrong time, or wrong medication. Medication Errors A medication error can be defined as a blunder in the treatment procedure that has led to or can potentially result in adverse effects on the patient’s health (Spath, 2011). This terminology refers to the process of treatment falling below the required standard.
However, when speaking to a client, using jargon and medical terms can be considered as inappropriate and confusing for the people involved. When Patients come into a hospital, they are concerned with their health and they would want to know as much information as a nurse can give them. By using the correct language, and knowing how much information to divulge, a nurse can positively contribute to the care of their client. (Wright, Lorraine M.; Leahey, Maureen. 2009).