Two professors of Vanderbilt University's Graduate School of Management suggest medical errors occur so frequently in healthcare because healthcare organizations often lack the safety culture needed to maintain patient safety, according to a Vanderbilt Hustler news report.
Professors Ranga Ramanujam and Timothy Vogus believe a clearly established culture of patient safety and innovative protocols are essential to improving and maintaining safety. In a paper he co-authored with researchers from the University of Michigan, Mr. Vogus said a hospital safety culture must have three key principles:
• Enabling. Healthcare organization leaders should set examples for others to emulate and also create a safe environment where clinicians feel they can speak up and report adverse events without fear of reprisal.
• Enacting. There must be a willingness to openly communicate errors in order to create best practices and meaningfully learn from those experiences.
• Elaborating. Over time, a healthcare organization's safety culture and practices should evolve and mature as more knowledge is disseminated and key lessons are learned.
Mr. Ramanujam adds other key practices are crucial to maintaining a culture of patient safety, including shifting from individual to collective goals and allowing clinicians to create their own solutions for patient safety through pilot programs and training.
Read the news report about patient safety culture.
Read other coverage about patient safety culture:
- AHRQ Issues Results of Hospital Survey on Patient Safety Culture
- Study: Patient Safety Program Can Improve Safety Climate
- Risk Profiling Needed for Patient Safety
Professors Ranga Ramanujam and Timothy Vogus believe a clearly established culture of patient safety and innovative protocols are essential to improving and maintaining safety. In a paper he co-authored with researchers from the University of Michigan, Mr. Vogus said a hospital safety culture must have three key principles:
• Enabling. Healthcare organization leaders should set examples for others to emulate and also create a safe environment where clinicians feel they can speak up and report adverse events without fear of reprisal.
• Enacting. There must be a willingness to openly communicate errors in order to create best practices and meaningfully learn from those experiences.
• Elaborating. Over time, a healthcare organization's safety culture and practices should evolve and mature as more knowledge is disseminated and key lessons are learned.
Mr. Ramanujam adds other key practices are crucial to maintaining a culture of patient safety, including shifting from individual to collective goals and allowing clinicians to create their own solutions for patient safety through pilot programs and training.
Read the news report about patient safety culture.
Read other coverage about patient safety culture:
- AHRQ Issues Results of Hospital Survey on Patient Safety Culture
- Study: Patient Safety Program Can Improve Safety Climate
- Risk Profiling Needed for Patient Safety