Answer for DNP 835 Reflecting on the “IHI Module: PS 202 Achieving Total Systems of Safety,” describe the eight recommendations proposed in the IHI report that DNP leaders can apply to accelerate patient safety and the prevention of harm Re: Topic 8 DQ 1

Answer for DNP 835 Reflecting on the “IHI Module: PS 202 Achieving Total Systems of Safety,” describe the eight recommendations proposed in the IHI report that DNP leaders can apply to accelerate patient safety and the prevention of harm

Re: Topic 8 DQ 1

Healthcare organizations must embrace safety to ensure patients are protected from preventable harm. As Rigamonti and Rigamonti (2021) posited, patient safety is a multidimensional obligation that involves individual and institutional commitments. The eight recommendations in the Institute of Healthcare Improvement (IHI) Report outline the individual and institutional measures that can be applied in health practice to optimize safety. Accordingly, DNP-prepared nurses should understand these recommendations, guiding principles, and their roles in safety promotion to improve health outcomes.

The eight recommendations demonstrate that achieving a total system of safety requires stakeholder engagement and the organization’s commitment to risk prevention. The first recommendation is that leaders should establish and sustain a culture of safety. Safety culture is determined by an organization’s shared values, norms, and beliefs influencing healthcare practitioners’ decision-making (Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, 2022). Next, the report suggests that organizations should have a centralized and coordinated patient safety oversight, establish safety metrics that reflect meaningful outcomes (recommendation 3), and increasingly fund research that focuses on patient safety and implementation (recommendation 4). The primary role of research is to improve knowledge of safety hazards and prevention.

The fifth recommendation is to address safety concerns across the entire care continuum. The best way to achieve this goal is to design and implement tools and structures that support safe care delivery and continuous safety evaluation (Gandhi et al., 2018). The healthcare workforce should also be supported (recommendation 6), and partnerships between patients and families be encouraged (recommendation 7). The last recommendation is that organizations and stakeholders must ensure that technologies are safe and optimized to improve patient safety. Safe technologies improve patient safety by preventing medical errors and introducing medical reminders and better diagnostic procedures (Astier et al., 2020). Overall, these outcomes are achieved when organizations prioritize safety and invest heavily in systems and cultures that optimize patient safety.

As a DNP leader, I will use recommendations 1 (a safety culture), 6 (supporting healthcare workers), and 8 (safe technologies) to promote patient safety in the workforce. A safety culture can be created by promoting values and implementing policies that prioritize patient safety. Such a culture can be achieved by promoting teamwork among nurses. Leaders can support the healthcare workforce by implementing programs that improve employees’ safety, morale, and well-being. A suitable example is a mental wellness program for nurses since it improves nurses’ resilience and reduces the chances of medication errors (Foster et al., 2018). Safe use of health IT can be achieved by continuous nurses’ training on the safe use of electronic health records and other technologies dominant in patient care.

References

Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality. (2022). What is patient safety culture? https://www.ahrq.gov/sops/about/patient-safety-culture.html

Astier, A., Carlet, J., Hoppe-Tichy, T., Jacklin, A., Jeanes, A., McManus, S., … & Fitzpatrick, R. (2020). What is the role of technology in improving patient safety? a French, German and UK healthcare professional perspective. Journal of Patient Safety and Risk Management, 25(6), 219-224. https://doi.org/10.1177/2516043520975661