NURS 344 Final Exam – Study Guide and Comprehensive Review Material
Safety - ANS ✔✔-Minimizes risk of harm to patients and providers through both system
effectiveness and individual performance
-Safety is the prevention of healthcare errors and the elimination or mitigation of patient injury
caused by health care errors
-Health care errors are unintended health care outcomes caused by a defect in the delivery of
care to a patient. These errors can include errors of commission, omission, or execution
Adverse event - ANS ✔✔-An event that results in unintended harm to the patient by an act of
commission rather than by the underlying disease or condition of the patient
Near miss - ANS ✔✔Error of commission or omission that could have harmed the patient, but
did not
Sentinel Event - ANS ✔✔Unexpected occurrence involving death or serious physical or
psychological injury
Types of errors - ANS ✔✔-Diagnostic
-Treatment
-Preventative
-Communication
Diagnostic errors - ANS ✔✔Delay in diagnosis, failure to obtain a test, using outdated tests,
failure to act on the results of a test or monitoring
Treatment error - ANS ✔✔Performance of a procedure or test, administration of treatment,
administering drugs, delaying treatment
,Preventative error - ANS ✔✔Failure to provide treatment, monitoring, or follow-up
Communication error - ANS ✔✔Failure of communicating
Placement of errors - ANS ✔✔Can be active or latent
Active error - ANS ✔✔Made by those who are providing care to a patient (doctors, nurses,
technicians)
Latent errors - ANS ✔✔These are hidden and are usually in the inactive area of the healthcare
system; something that is wrong in the organization, but does not immediately result in
something bad happening
Attributes of safety - ANS ✔✔-Knowledge
-Skills
-Attitude
Theoretical links to safety - ANS ✔✔-Human factors
-Crew resource management
-High-reliability organizations
Safety and its context to nursing and health care - ANS ✔✔Just culture- the health care systems
value is in reporting errors without punishment
Transparency in health care- information about safety should be made available to the public
Interrelated Concepts to safety - ANS ✔✔-Vigilance
-Quality
,-Regulation
-Teamwork and collaboration
-Communication
Assessments for medication reconcilliation/safety - ANS ✔✔-Allergies
-Medication knowledge
-Comprehensive drug assessment
-Patient understanding of medication
-Assess patient adherence
-Cognitive function
-Strength
-Psychomotor/psychosocial assessment
-Physical assessment
-Vital signs
-Are they taking supplements, OTC medications?
Risk factors for issues with medication contraindications and adverse effects - ANS ✔✔-
Polypharmacy
-Age
-Falls
-Loss of motor skills
-Dysphagia
-Health illiteracy
-Poor psychomotor skills
-Cognitive decline
, Psychosocial concerns for medication reconcilliation - ANS ✔✔-Access to medications
-Family support
-Wanting to maintain independence
-Cognitive impairment
-Lack of insurance
-Anxiety
-Substance abuse
Lab values for polypharmacy - ANS ✔✔-Blood sugars
-CBC
-BMP
-Electrolyte levels
-PT/INR
-UA
-BUN/Creatinine
-Peak and trough levels
Elderly considerations for medications - ANS ✔✔-Caregivers
-Polypharmacy
-Fine motor skills (trouble removing tops on the pill bottles)
-Elimination (decrease in kidney function)
-Metabolism (decrease in liver function)
-Risk for falls
-Fine print
-Dosing frequency
Safety - ANS ✔✔-Minimizes risk of harm to patients and providers through both system
effectiveness and individual performance
-Safety is the prevention of healthcare errors and the elimination or mitigation of patient injury
caused by health care errors
-Health care errors are unintended health care outcomes caused by a defect in the delivery of
care to a patient. These errors can include errors of commission, omission, or execution
Adverse event - ANS ✔✔-An event that results in unintended harm to the patient by an act of
commission rather than by the underlying disease or condition of the patient
Near miss - ANS ✔✔Error of commission or omission that could have harmed the patient, but
did not
Sentinel Event - ANS ✔✔Unexpected occurrence involving death or serious physical or
psychological injury
Types of errors - ANS ✔✔-Diagnostic
-Treatment
-Preventative
-Communication
Diagnostic errors - ANS ✔✔Delay in diagnosis, failure to obtain a test, using outdated tests,
failure to act on the results of a test or monitoring
Treatment error - ANS ✔✔Performance of a procedure or test, administration of treatment,
administering drugs, delaying treatment
,Preventative error - ANS ✔✔Failure to provide treatment, monitoring, or follow-up
Communication error - ANS ✔✔Failure of communicating
Placement of errors - ANS ✔✔Can be active or latent
Active error - ANS ✔✔Made by those who are providing care to a patient (doctors, nurses,
technicians)
Latent errors - ANS ✔✔These are hidden and are usually in the inactive area of the healthcare
system; something that is wrong in the organization, but does not immediately result in
something bad happening
Attributes of safety - ANS ✔✔-Knowledge
-Skills
-Attitude
Theoretical links to safety - ANS ✔✔-Human factors
-Crew resource management
-High-reliability organizations
Safety and its context to nursing and health care - ANS ✔✔Just culture- the health care systems
value is in reporting errors without punishment
Transparency in health care- information about safety should be made available to the public
Interrelated Concepts to safety - ANS ✔✔-Vigilance
-Quality
,-Regulation
-Teamwork and collaboration
-Communication
Assessments for medication reconcilliation/safety - ANS ✔✔-Allergies
-Medication knowledge
-Comprehensive drug assessment
-Patient understanding of medication
-Assess patient adherence
-Cognitive function
-Strength
-Psychomotor/psychosocial assessment
-Physical assessment
-Vital signs
-Are they taking supplements, OTC medications?
Risk factors for issues with medication contraindications and adverse effects - ANS ✔✔-
Polypharmacy
-Age
-Falls
-Loss of motor skills
-Dysphagia
-Health illiteracy
-Poor psychomotor skills
-Cognitive decline
, Psychosocial concerns for medication reconcilliation - ANS ✔✔-Access to medications
-Family support
-Wanting to maintain independence
-Cognitive impairment
-Lack of insurance
-Anxiety
-Substance abuse
Lab values for polypharmacy - ANS ✔✔-Blood sugars
-CBC
-BMP
-Electrolyte levels
-PT/INR
-UA
-BUN/Creatinine
-Peak and trough levels
Elderly considerations for medications - ANS ✔✔-Caregivers
-Polypharmacy
-Fine motor skills (trouble removing tops on the pill bottles)
-Elimination (decrease in kidney function)
-Metabolism (decrease in liver function)
-Risk for falls
-Fine print
-Dosing frequency
