Question

Identifies two instruments appropriate for determining the effectiveness for medical error intervention and explains why they are appropriate.

Answer 1

Medical errors are a serious health problem and a leading cause of death in United States .Part of the solution Is to maintain a culture that works towards recognising safety challenges and implementing viable solutions rather than harbouring a culture of blame ,shame ,and punishment .

All the medical errors can be classified in to two major types

• Error of Omission
• Error of Comission.

Some of the medical errors are

1. Adverse drug reactions
2. Medication errors
3. Laboratory errors
4. Surgical errors
5. Patient controlled analgesia
6. Patient falls
7. Healthcare associated infections

The two instruments for medical error intervention are

Medication errors - Following Five Rights of patient

Surgical Errors - Implementing WHO safety check list & Joint Commission patient safety goals .

1.Instrument to prevent medication error :

To prevent the medication error ,the rights of the patient to be followed and also through informed consent .

Following Five rights of patient

1. Right patient
2. Right Drug
3. Right Dose
4. Right Frequency.
5. Right route .

Informed consent :

It is a permission granted in full knowledge of the possible consequences ,typically that which is given by patient to a doctor for treatment with knowledge of the possible risks and benefits .

2.Instrument to prevent surgical errors :

• Following Surgical safety checklist
• Following patient safety goals

WHO Surgical safetyChecklist

The surgical safety checklist is a simple tool which is designed to improve the safety of surgical procedure by bringing the whole operating room together to perform some of the key checks before starting the surgery.

It has three stages of operation

1. Sign in.
2. Time out
3. Sign Out .

this is one of the instrument which is required to prevent the surgical errors

Joint commission  Patient safety goals .

• Identify patient safety dangers and risks
• Identify patients correctly by confirming the identity in at least two ways .
• Improve communication such as getting test results
• Prevent infection by hand cleaning ,post -op infection antibiotics, catheter changes .
• Prevent mistakes in surgery by making sure the correct surgery is done .
• Use device alarms and make sure that alarms on medical equipment are heard and checked quickly.
• Use medicines safely and correctly.
• Label all medications
• Take extra time with patients who have been prescribed anti-coagulants .
• To prevent nosocomial infections ,hand washing should routine before and after visiting each patient .

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