SDW news brief: When medical errors happen, executives shouldn’t hide
Staff Development Weekly: Insight on Evidence-Based Practice in Education, November 4, 2011
Want to receive articles like this one in your inbox? Subscribe to Staff Development Weekly: Insight on Evidence-Based Practice in Education!
When a provider makes a tragic mistake that harms a patient, most healthcare organization executives and their staffs are told to hide. If they say anything, they will be more likely to be sued, they think.
Instead of promptly reaching out to empathize and console with food, housing, money, and social support for those whose lives are irreversibly altered, hospital executives and staff often take a "willful blindness" posture.
They don't acknowledge, disclose, or apologize. Instead, they repeat phrases like, "It will blow over," "It wasn't our fault," or "No one will find out."
They advise care teams to act defensively, to avoid saying anything that will expose them "to the media." They think "I'll look bad," and tell everyone "I'm unavailable." Or "Our attorneys will handle it."
But these phrases, attitudes, and behaviors are just the ones that will make litigation more likely and prolonged, with potentially higher damages and more animosity, says James Conway, senior vice president for the Institute for Healthcare Improvement. And these responses can add more anxiety and suffering to the affected patients and their families.
To read the rest of this free article, click here.
Source: HealthLeaders Media
Want to receive articles like this one in your inbox? Subscribe to Staff Development Weekly: Insight on Evidence-Based Practice in Education!
Related Products
-
Hospital Safety Center
Improve compliance with hospital safety standards from The Joint Commission, OSHA, and other regulators with this...
-
Healthcare Life Safety Compliance
Learn Life Safety Code tips and interpretations for healthcare facilities with this in-depth monthly resource.
-
CNA Training Advisor: Lesson Plans for Busy Staff Trainers
Finally-a staff training program that really works!
-
Medical Environment Update
Timely medical compliance news from OSHA, CDC, EPA, and other regulatory agencies!
-
Bloodborne Pathogens Training Video
Meets OSHA requirements for training employees on the bloodborne pathogens standard!
Most Popular
- Articles
-
- Featured blog post: Nurses face felony charges after reporting physician to the Texas Medical Board
- Topic: CMS, OESS post new security compliance review information, checklist
- Q/A: Volume requirement for reporting hydration services
- HIPAA Q&A: Answering service messages
- News and briefs: Oklahoma Osteopathic Association against residency bill change
- What does case-mix index mean to you?
- QA:Coding multiple initial infusions
- OB services: Coding inside and outside of the package
- State medical board will hear unprofessional charges against OB-GYN
- The debate continues: Nurses who reported physician to the Texas Medical Board file federal appeal
- E-mailed
-
- Featured blog post: Nurses face felony charges after reporting physician to the Texas Medical Board
- Are your workforce members texting PHI?
- Don't let these sentinel events trigger falsely
- Arkansas woman convicted for HIPAA violation
- Q/A: Coding infusions to correct low potassium levels
- Q&A: Coding for protein malnutrition
- Q&A tackles coding questions about injections and infusions
- Joint Commission Center announces handoff communication solutions
- Inside best practice: Reduce patient falls with a stoplight
- Identify modifiable risk factors to prevent patient falls
- Searched