It’s the most terrible thing to be seriously sick and end up in a hospital that proves to be unsafe for patients. Hospitals are supposed to be safe places especially for patients, but unfortunately some do not realize that theirs are not. So, here are 5 tips for hospital safety, particularly to prevent how hospitals fail to be fail-safe.
1. Failure to Observe Basic Infection Remedy
Basic among hospital procedures is central venous catheter insertion. There are 5 basic steps to weed out infection when inserting catheters or when avoiding middle line-associated blood flow infections. First, wash hands thoroughly. Second, observe full-barrier safety measures. Third, observe skin cleanliness using chlorhexidine. Fourth, do away with femoral lines. And fifth, remove any unnecessary or remaining lines.
To make matters simpler, a growing number of medical and health experts further claim that most infections can be remedied with basic and proper hand washing. Definitely, this should go with the 5 tips for hospital safety. Here is what they recommend:
With enough soap, create lather by gently rubbing the hands together. First, rub palms together. Then rub the fingers against a palm. Next, rub each finger, especially the sides using the other hand. After that, rub all the knuckles against the palm of the other hand. Then rub the backs of the hands.
When doing the above hand-washing, experts recommend singing the Birthday Song twice. They approximate, the length of time it takes to sing the song should cover the right amount of time doing it.
It is sometimes unbelievable how simple precautions like thorough hand washing are among ways how hospitals fail to be fail-safe.
2. Not Paying Enough Attention on VTE
Always say no to venous thromboembolism or VTE, and make sure to support the declaration with action. Most hospital deaths are due to VTE which regrettably is easily preventable. There are good medical literature materials available online and here are tips on what to look for in them: how to layout VTE evidence, what are the best practices, analyzing how the needed care is delivered, the track records as far as metrics are concerned, interventions on layers, and improvements on all the mentioned items.
Updated information on VTE prevention definitely ranks high among the 5 tips for hospital safety.
3. Blood Thinner Syndrome
Patients released from hospitals after surgery are often given prescription for blood thinners like warfarin. Such medications prevent lethal blood clots. However, misuse of the same can be equally lethal, leading to uncontrolled bleeding. Or else, uninformed patients do not realize the dangers of taking the medication and the needed precautions to prevent complications, like avoiding sustaining head wounds or injuries.
This is solved by simple patient information on blood thinners or a video presentation on the same featuring what should be avoided to avert complications. Aside from correcting the ways how hospitals fail to be fail-safe, equally vital is how patients are given adequate instruction on prescription safety after being released from the hospital.
4. Poor Hospital Design
This is not about hotel façade design or the construction materials used for the hospital structure. Hospitals should have effective design principles where the systematic movement flow and interconnectivity of related rooms and areas are well considered. Just watch how important design is to prevent hospital safety failures and also see why this point has to be in the 5 tips for hospital safety:
a. Patients’ wards should be accessible to the nurses’ stations.
b. Infection prone areas should be isolated.
c. The ICU should be isolated.
d. The pharmacy should be well lighted to avoid medication errors.
5. Neglected Hospital PR
Finally, some hospitals fail due to discourteous hospital staff. Hospitals should know the power of public relations. Some call it being a “patient-friendly hospital.” And among hospital people expected devotion in this area are nurses and doctors.
Jenny is a free lancer writer and content builder of many sites.