Patient safety and quality
Describe assessment activities that identify the physical, psychosocial, and cognitive
status of a patient as it pertains to his or her safety. - ANS - - Identify patient's
perceptions of safety needs and risks, identify actual and potential threats to the
patient's safety, determine impact of the underlying illness on the patient's safety,
Identify the presence of risks for the patient's developmental stage and patient's
environment, Determine effect of environmental influence on the patient's safety.
Describe ways to prevent procedure-related accidents. - ANS - - Caused by health
care providers and includes medication and fluid administration errors, improper
application of external devices, and accidents related to improper performance of
procedures such as dressing changes or urinary catheter insertion.
- All staff need to be aware of distractions and interruptions contribute to
procedure-related accidents and need to be limited, especially during high-risk
procedures such as medication administration, another common is patients at risk for
injury in transferring to a bed or chair. Correct use of safe patient handling techniques
and equipment reduces the risk of injuries when moving and lifting patients.
Discuss common physical hazards and methods for preventing them. - ANS -
Environmental Safety
- A patient's environment includes physical and psychosocial factors that influence or
affect the life and survival of that patient.
- A safe environment meets basic needs, reduces physical hazards as well as the
transmission of pathogens, and controls pollution.
Basic needs
- Physiological needs, including the need for sufficient oxygen, nutrition, and optimum
temperature, influence a person's safety.
- According to Maslow's hierarchy of needs, these basic needs must be met before
physical and psychological safety and security can be addressed.
Oxygen
- Patients who require supplemental oxygen in health care settings are at risk because
oxygen is highly flammable, fire can occur when the patient chooses to smoke or is
exposed to a heat source.
- Strict codes regulate the use and storage of medical oxygen in health care agencies,
not the case at home environments; be sure to administer oxygen safely and provide
, patients and family caregivers the information needed to manage oxygen correctly in
the home.
- Oxygen can build up in at home and on a patient's clothing and hair; if a person
smokes in an environment that has supplemental oxygen, such as a house, even a
small spark can cause a fire that will spread very quickly, resulting in extensive burns
and death.
- Know factors that decrease the amount of available oxygen in a pt's environment: an
improperly functioning heating system, a furnace, fireplace, or a stove that is not
properly vented introduces carbon monoxide (CO) into the environment.
- CO affects oxygenation by binding strongly with hemoglobin, preventing the formation
of oxyhemoglobin and reducing the supply of oxygen delivered to tissues.
- Low concentrations of oxygen cause nausea, dizziness, headache, and fatigue.
- Unintentional, non-fire related (UNFR) carbon mo
Discuss how an individual's developmental age creates safety risks. - ANS - - In
addition to being knowledgeable about the home and health care environment and the
inherent safety risks, nurses need to know a patient's developmental level; mobility,
sensory, and cognitive statue; lifestyle choices; and knowledge of common safety
precautions.
Developmental Stages and Risks
Infant, Toddler, and Preschooler
- Infants and toddlers explore the environment and, because of their increased level of
oral activity, put objects in their mouths, this increases their risk for poisoning or
aspiration and choking on foreign material such as toys.
- A safe sleep environment for an infant involves the placement of the infant on his back
on a firm mattress in a safety-approved crib that is free of pillows, toys, and blankets, as
these are suffocation hazard. Instruct patients about the hazards of sleeping with an
infant in bed, on sofa, or on the floor.
- Limited physical coordination in preschoolers contributes to falls from riding bicycles
and using playground equipment, other injuries include burns and drowning.
- Accidents involving children are largely preventable, but accident prevention requires
health education for parents and the removal of dangers whenever possible.
School-Age Child
- Enter a period of less intense emotions, secure in their dependency on parents and
family and with self-confidence tempered by a more realistic perspective.
- Have the energy to explore the environment beyond the home and gradually increase
the scope of interpersonal interaction.
- Learning how to perform more complicated motor activities and often are
uncoordinated, also expand their cognitive and psychosocial skills.
Describe assessment activities that identify the physical, psychosocial, and cognitive
status of a patient as it pertains to his or her safety. - ANS - - Identify patient's
perceptions of safety needs and risks, identify actual and potential threats to the
patient's safety, determine impact of the underlying illness on the patient's safety,
Identify the presence of risks for the patient's developmental stage and patient's
environment, Determine effect of environmental influence on the patient's safety.
Describe ways to prevent procedure-related accidents. - ANS - - Caused by health
care providers and includes medication and fluid administration errors, improper
application of external devices, and accidents related to improper performance of
procedures such as dressing changes or urinary catheter insertion.
- All staff need to be aware of distractions and interruptions contribute to
procedure-related accidents and need to be limited, especially during high-risk
procedures such as medication administration, another common is patients at risk for
injury in transferring to a bed or chair. Correct use of safe patient handling techniques
and equipment reduces the risk of injuries when moving and lifting patients.
Discuss common physical hazards and methods for preventing them. - ANS -
Environmental Safety
- A patient's environment includes physical and psychosocial factors that influence or
affect the life and survival of that patient.
- A safe environment meets basic needs, reduces physical hazards as well as the
transmission of pathogens, and controls pollution.
Basic needs
- Physiological needs, including the need for sufficient oxygen, nutrition, and optimum
temperature, influence a person's safety.
- According to Maslow's hierarchy of needs, these basic needs must be met before
physical and psychological safety and security can be addressed.
Oxygen
- Patients who require supplemental oxygen in health care settings are at risk because
oxygen is highly flammable, fire can occur when the patient chooses to smoke or is
exposed to a heat source.
- Strict codes regulate the use and storage of medical oxygen in health care agencies,
not the case at home environments; be sure to administer oxygen safely and provide
, patients and family caregivers the information needed to manage oxygen correctly in
the home.
- Oxygen can build up in at home and on a patient's clothing and hair; if a person
smokes in an environment that has supplemental oxygen, such as a house, even a
small spark can cause a fire that will spread very quickly, resulting in extensive burns
and death.
- Know factors that decrease the amount of available oxygen in a pt's environment: an
improperly functioning heating system, a furnace, fireplace, or a stove that is not
properly vented introduces carbon monoxide (CO) into the environment.
- CO affects oxygenation by binding strongly with hemoglobin, preventing the formation
of oxyhemoglobin and reducing the supply of oxygen delivered to tissues.
- Low concentrations of oxygen cause nausea, dizziness, headache, and fatigue.
- Unintentional, non-fire related (UNFR) carbon mo
Discuss how an individual's developmental age creates safety risks. - ANS - - In
addition to being knowledgeable about the home and health care environment and the
inherent safety risks, nurses need to know a patient's developmental level; mobility,
sensory, and cognitive statue; lifestyle choices; and knowledge of common safety
precautions.
Developmental Stages and Risks
Infant, Toddler, and Preschooler
- Infants and toddlers explore the environment and, because of their increased level of
oral activity, put objects in their mouths, this increases their risk for poisoning or
aspiration and choking on foreign material such as toys.
- A safe sleep environment for an infant involves the placement of the infant on his back
on a firm mattress in a safety-approved crib that is free of pillows, toys, and blankets, as
these are suffocation hazard. Instruct patients about the hazards of sleeping with an
infant in bed, on sofa, or on the floor.
- Limited physical coordination in preschoolers contributes to falls from riding bicycles
and using playground equipment, other injuries include burns and drowning.
- Accidents involving children are largely preventable, but accident prevention requires
health education for parents and the removal of dangers whenever possible.
School-Age Child
- Enter a period of less intense emotions, secure in their dependency on parents and
family and with self-confidence tempered by a more realistic perspective.
- Have the energy to explore the environment beyond the home and gradually increase
the scope of interpersonal interaction.
- Learning how to perform more complicated motor activities and often are
uncoordinated, also expand their cognitive and psychosocial skills.
