NUR154 - Preventing Medical Errors (2.5 HR)

Purpose: Health care personnel working in any setting will increase their understanding of and skills for eliminating medical errors. Objectives: 1. Discuss the impact of medical errors; 2. Define common types of medical errors, including adverse and sentinel events; 3. Identify factors that increase the risk of error prone situations; 4. Discuss safety needs of patients and the processes to meet them; 5. Describe error reduction and prevention measures; 5. Explain key concepts for proper medical documentation and communication; 6. Explore the JCAHO requirements for improving safety and quality of care; 7. Discuss professional and legal responsibilities for reporting medical errors and sentinel events; 8.Describe system processes to improve outcomes, including root cause analysis.