Patient safety is a healthcare discipline that evolved as a result of the growing complexity of healthcare systems and the resulting increase in hospital patient harm. Its mission is to keep patients safe by minimizing and eliminating risks, errors, and injuries. Patient safety is essential for providing high-quality important health services. Patient safety includes everything from cleanliness measures and medical record-keeping to medicine delivery and patient diagnostics.
The first step in lowering the risk of medical mistakes is to understand patient safety in nursing. The Institute of Medicine has defined patient safety as "the avoidance of damage to patients. Evidence-based outcomes will be used to consistently enhance patient safety measures and develop an enduring culture of learning and improvement in a strong, effective patient safety approach.
Patient’s safety in nursing
Nurses and the specific role they play in delivering bedside care necessitate a specialized approach to improving patient safety measures in nursing. Many nurses find it beneficial to break down patient safety into a series of practical strategies aimed at reducing medical mistakes and improving patient outcomes.
Few factors are discussed here which are vital in nursing for patient safety.
Patients' Monitoring
The medical state of a patient can change in the blink of an eye therefore nurses must be ready to spot any difficulties that occur promptly. Nurses' patient monitoring abilities are considerably improved by continuing education, which helps them better comprehend the intricacies of wound development, pressure ulcers, and other bedside conditions so they may recognize difficulties before they become problematic.
Access to modern technologies also allows nurses to keep a better eye on their patients. While most hospitals have bedside alarms, technological advancements such as pharmaceutical barcode scanning and laser temperature checks continue to increase the quality of patient monitoring. Nursing Coursework Help
Patients' Education
A significant cause of avoidable mistakes in healthcare is patients' failure to follow their post-discharge self-care routine, which includes wound treatment, drug regimes, and occupational therapy. The study discovered that cardiac patients frequently have misconceptions about the indication, dose, or frequency of their cardiac medication. Nurses can increase patient safety by simply but effectively teaching patients about their post-discharge care. Nurses help patients have a smooth recovery by collaborating with them to ensure that they are fully informed about their medical condition and self-care routine before being released.
Assisting Doctors
Physicians, despite their laser concentration on a patient's health, are however disposed to human mistakes. Nurses function as an extra set of eyes in the operating room and beyond, ready to call a timeout if the physician makes a mistake, among other things. Nurses must have a thorough awareness of each patient's medical history and whatever procedures they are undergoing in order to assist doctors in avoiding errors wherever feasible. Nurses will be able to spot potentially dangerous drugs or surgical complications more easily as a result of this increased understanding.
Clots in the blood
As the body attempts to halt bleeding after an injury, these gel-like clumps of blood grow spontaneously. Various medical procedures, such as blood thinners or anticoagulants, clot dissolvers, and vein filters, should be able to avoid them.
Infections as a result of unethical medical practices
Infections acquired in the hospital might develop as a result of contaminated instruments or surfaces, a lack of sufficient cleanliness in care units, or dubious transfusion or surgical operations. In this case, nurses should be extra careful while treating the patient.
Faulty equipment
Medical mistakes can be caused by malfunctioning medical equipment that puts patients at risk of harm or complications. This ensures that the nurses are responsible for the patient’s safety.