patient safety
Medical error avoidance
Patient safety is the prevention of harm to patients during medical care.
The term encompasses practices, protocols, and systems designed to reduce errors and adverse events in healthcare settings: The hospital improved its patient safety record after implementing new surgical checklists.
Patient safety initiatives address medication errors, infections, falls, and communication failures among providers.
Preventing pathogen transmission
- hand hygieneCleaning one's palms
- fall preventionSafeguards against losing balance
- medication errorIncorrect drug administration
- drug interactionSubstances altering each other's effects
Notifying users of problems
- near missNarrowly averted incident
- checklistsItemized task records
- protocolsEstablished codes of conduct
- clinical guidelinesOfficial medical treatment recommendations
risk management · quality improvement · audit · monitoring · compliance · accreditation · standardization · redundancy
Permission given with understanding
- autonomyIndependent decision-making capacity
- beneficenceActive desire to help
- justiceFair treatment under law
- confidentialityQuality of protecting secrets
fiduciary duty · moral responsibility · accountability · transparency · trust · advocacy · vulnerability · professionalism
Barriers preventing falls from mattresses
- call buttonsButtons requesting service
- alarmsSignals indicating danger
- barcode scanningOptical product identification method
- alert systemsNotification mechanisms for emergencies
wristbands · sharps containers · isolation rooms · crash carts
Minimizing adverse outcomes pragmatically
- recoveryRegaining what was lost
- healingRestoration of health
- quality of lifeGeneral life satisfaction
- survivalRemaining alive against odds
morbidity · mortality · preventable death · length of stay · readmission
infection control
Preventing pathogen transmission
- hand hygieneCleaning one's palms
- fall preventionSafeguards against losing balance
- medication errorIncorrect drug administration
error reporting
Notifying users of problems
- near missNarrowly averted incident
- checklistsItemized task records
- protocolsEstablished codes of conduct
clinical guidelines · risk management · quality improvement · audit · monitoring · compliance · accreditation · standardization · redundancy
informed consent
Permission given with understanding
- autonomyIndependent decision-making capacity
- beneficenceActive desire to help
- justiceFair treatment under law
confidentiality · fiduciary duty · moral responsibility · accountability · transparency · trust · advocacy · vulnerability · professionalism · code of ethics
bed rails
Barriers preventing falls from mattresses
- call buttonsButtons requesting service
- alarmsSignals indicating danger
- barcode scanningOptical product identification method
alert systems · wristbands · sharps containers · isolation rooms · crash carts
harm reduction
Minimizing adverse outcomes pragmatically
- recoveryRegaining what was lost
- healingRestoration of health
- quality of lifeGeneral life satisfaction
survival · morbidity · mortality · preventable death · length of stay · readmission
- surgerysurgery, surgeon, surgeons, operation, incision
- Healthcare Managementnurse manager, director of nursing, charge nurse, head nurse, nurse supervisor
- patient carecare planning, chronic care, disease management, home care, care plans
- patient safetyinfection control, hand hygiene, fall prevention, medical errors, medication errors
- clinical trialsclinical trial, placebo, double-blind, control group, double blind
- medical regulationmedical devices, CE marking, conformity, quality management, risk management
patient safetysurgical complications
Negative outcomes from procedures
patient safetymedical negligence
Substandard professional healthcare
medical malpractice · gross negligence · malpractice · professional misconduct · dereliction of duty
safe, patient, safety, unsafe, impatient, safeguard, safely, patiently, impatience