The Importance of Patient Safety.
Article Source: HealthSnare.com
Patient Safety is now one of the most important factors in the modern day hospital, and the recent crisis with infections spreading through wards has put doctors, nurses, and surgeons, on high alert. Healthcare-associated infections are one of the most pressing issues facing our health services today. According to the Department of Health one in ten patients acquires a HAI, and those who do contract an infection stay in hospital nearly three times longer than ordinary patients, placing tremendous financial pressure on our already strapped-for-cash health services. The actual phrase ‘Patient Safety' has become much used in the medical world as of late, with staff keen to make sure that their institutions provide a safe and calming atmosphere for those that need medical care, and they have indeed laid down a series of provisions to ensure that patient safety is at its optimum level.
One of these provisions is the need to prevent venous thromboembolism, which is a blood clot that forms in the veins. Venous thromboembolism can cause discomfort but generally do not cause serious consequences, unlike the deep venous thromboses (DVTs) that form in the deep veins of the legs or in the pelvic veins. However, it can be dangerous, and is actually the most common cause of preventable hospital deaths. However, surgical teams, as well as doctors and nurses are now using ‘goals' and ‘timelines' as a great way to stay focused and maintain excellent communication throughout treating someone with a hospital based problem like venous thromboembolism. The team firstly need to agree on general goals, with the. The general goal also should be a "stretch," one that is aggressive enough to mandate a change in design from the current process to achieve it (e.g. eliminate preventable cases of hospital-acquired VTE). In addition to setting a stretch goal, at this early stage it helps also to be clear about the initial and eventual scope of the effort (e.g will the focus be on medical patients, surgical patients, or both?). By setting goals to treat such things as venous thromboembolism the recovery rate is much higher.
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Stephanie Wood
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Date: Sun, 25 Apr 2010 Time: 4:46 AM
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