Email Updates
April 26, 2023 Weekly Issue
PSNet highlights the latest patient safety literature, news, and expert commentary, including Weekly Updates, WebM&M, and Perspectives on Safety. The current issue highlights what's new this week in patient safety literature, news, conferences, reports, and more. Past issues of the PSNet Weekly Update are available to browse. WebM&M presents current and past monthly issues of Cases & Commentaries and Perspectives on Safety.
This Week’s Featured Articles
Herasevich S, Soleimani J, Huang C, et al. BMJ Qual Saf. 2023;32:676-688.
Vulnerable populations, such as those with limited English proficiency, minoritized race or ethnicity, migrant populations, or patients qualifying for public insurance, may be at higher risk for adverse health events. In this review, researchers sought to identify frequency and causes of diagnostic error of vulnerable populations presenting to the emergency department with cardiovascular or cerebrovascular/neurological symptoms. Black patients presenting with cardiovascular symptoms had significantly higher odds of diagnostic error. Other demographic factors did not show similar associations, nor did studies of patients with cerebrovascular/neurological symptoms.
Thomas AL, Graham KL, Davila S, et al. J Patient Saf. 2023;19:180-184.
The COVID-19 pandemic resulted in many changes to the delivery of healthcare. Using data submitted to one Patient Safety Organization, this study examined patient safety events and concerns related to proning patients during the COVID-19 pandemic. Issues identified included medical device-related pressure injuries and device dislodgement, concerns with care delivery, staffing levels, and acuity issues.
Vaughan CP, Burningham Z, Kelleher JL, et al. Acad Emerg Med. 2023;30 :340-348 .
The Enhancing Quality of Prescribing Practices for Older Adults in the Emergency Department (EQUIIPPED) program is a multicomponent intervention intended to reduce potentially inappropriate medication (PIM) prescribing among older adults who are discharged from the emergency department (ED). This cluster-randomized trial set at eight Veterans Health Administration (VA) EDs compared the impact of two approaches to the audit and feedback component of the intervention – active provider feedback using academic detailing (i.e., educational outreach visits to improve clinical decision making) versus passive provider feedback using dashboard based on the Beers criteria. Researchers found that academic detailing significantly improved PIM prescribing compared to sites using the dashboard, but noted that dashboard-based audit and feedback may be a reasonable strategy EDs with limited resources.
Vaughan CP, Burningham Z, Kelleher JL, et al. Acad Emerg Med. 2023;30 :340-348 .
The Enhancing Quality of Prescribing Practices for Older Adults in the Emergency Department (EQUIIPPED) program is a multicomponent intervention intended to reduce potentially inappropriate medication (PIM) prescribing among older adults who are discharged from the emergency department (ED). This cluster-randomized trial set at eight Veterans Health Administration (VA) EDs compared the impact of two approaches to the audit and feedback component of the intervention – active provider feedback using academic detailing (i.e., educational outreach visits to improve clinical decision making) versus passive provider feedback using dashboard based on the Beers criteria. Researchers found that academic detailing significantly improved PIM prescribing compared to sites using the dashboard, but noted that dashboard-based audit and feedback may be a reasonable strategy EDs with limited resources.
Aljuffali LA, Almalag HM, Alnaim L. Healthcare (Basel). 2023;11:66.
Simulated hospital rooms have been used in medical education to identify potential safety threats. In this study, pharmacy students participated in a team-based simulation to identify potential latent errors and then completed a system thinking survey. Survey results indicated students had a good understanding of systems thinking, but only identified about half of the potential errors in the simulated room.
Duffy C, Menon N, Horak D, et al. JAMA Netw Open. 2023;6:e237621.
Safety-II is a proactive approach to improving patient safety by focusing on what goes right in healthcare. This study describes the use of a novel tool and activity, One Safe Act (OSA), to capture activities performed by perioperative staff that keep patients safe. Eight themes emerged, with the most common theme being routines the staff “always” performed, followed by confirming resource availability.
Mebrahtu TF, McInerney CD, Benn J, et al. BMJ Health Care Inform. 2023;30(1):e100653.
Command centers are an emerging approach to improve the delivery of safe care and identify clinical deterioration. This article describes the implementation of a command center at two hospitals in the United Kingdom, which led to improvements in mortality and readmissions but did not impact postoperative sepsis rates.
Barger LK, Weaver MD, Sullivan JP, et al. BMJ Med. 2023;2:e000320.
The Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME) in the United States limits resident physicians' workweek to 80 hours. Several studies have investigated the association between first year residents (i.e., interns, PGY1), worked hours and patient safety. This study includes residents beyond the first year (i.e., PGY2+). Nearly 5,000 PGY2+ residents reported the number of hours worked, patient safety outcomes, and resident health and outcomes. Working more than 60 hours in a week significantly increased the risk of a medical error resulting in patient death. The authors suggest weekly workweek limits should be significantly reduced, such as they are in the United Kingdom.
Zavalkoff S, O’Donnell S, Lalani J, et al. Can J Anaesth. 2023;70:886-892.
Lack of timely identification and referral of potential organ donors and poor communication can lead to missed opportunities for life-saving organ transplants. This analysis of data from Canadian organ donation organizations estimates that there were 354 potentially missed transplants between 2016 and 2018.
Løland M, Braut GS, Lichtenberg SM, et al. SAGE Open Med. 2023;11:205031212311642.
Quality improvement and patient safety programs implement numerous improvement projects over time, and understanding their overall success and long-term sustainability is important. This article describes the impact of improvement toolkits in the labor and delivery ward on a Norwegian hospital since the 1990s. Fourteen tools (e.g., databases, leadership seminars) and their results are described.
Stevens EL, Hulme A, Goode N, et al. Appl Ergon. 2023;110:104000.
Medication administration is a complex process with many opportunities for error. Using the Event Analysis of Systemic Teamwork (EAST) model, researchers identified opportunities to improve medication administration system performance and promote patient safety. The authors discuss the networks involved in medication administration (e.g., task network, social network, information network) and how the complexities involved in each network contribute to medication administration errors.
Allender EA, Bottema SM, Bosley CL, et al. Respir Care. 2023;68:749-759.
After unanticipated adverse events, healthcare providers may experience negative emotions, such as sadness, anxiety, or anger, sometimes referred to as the "second victim" experience (SVE). In this study of 171 respiratory therapists, more than half reported they had been part of an event that resulted in SVE. Nearly three-quarters reported that short staffing played a role in their emotional distress, and half indicated COVID-19 contributed to their SVE. In line with other studies, the most desired type of support following an adverse event was talking to a peer.
Thomas AL, Graham KL, Davila S, et al. J Patient Saf. 2023;19:180-184.
The COVID-19 pandemic resulted in many changes to the delivery of healthcare. Using data submitted to one Patient Safety Organization, this study examined patient safety events and concerns related to proning patients during the COVID-19 pandemic. Issues identified included medical device-related pressure injuries and device dislodgement, concerns with care delivery, staffing levels, and acuity issues.
Pozzobon LD, Lam J, Chimonides E, et al. Healthc Manage Forum. 2023;36:241-245.
High-reliability organizations are able to achieve safety despite organizational changes or other hazardous conditions. This article describes the implementation of a new electronic health record (EHR) system at one academic health system in Canada and provides examples of how high-reliability principles informed activities to prevent patient harm during this organizational change.
Organizational Policy/Guidelines
Jewell ML, Jewell HL, Singer R, et al. Aesthetic Plast Surg. 2023;47:1234-1238.
Fentanyl is a high-risk medication, whether prescribed by a health professional or obtained illicitly. This patient safety advisory encourages healthcare providers to educate their patients on the risks of counterfeit fentanyl.
Richburg CE, Dossett LA, Hughes TM. Surg Clin North Am. 2023;103:271-285.
Cognitive biases can threaten patient safety in a variety of ways. This narrative review summarizes the common cognitive biases in surgical care and how they threaten patient safety, including delays in diagnosis and treatment, unnecessary surgeries, and intraoperative errors and complications. The authors also discuss cognitive debiasing strategies to mitigate the impact of cognitive biases.
Herasevich S, Soleimani J, Huang C, et al. BMJ Qual Saf. 2023;32:676-688.
Vulnerable populations, such as those with limited English proficiency, minoritized race or ethnicity, migrant populations, or patients qualifying for public insurance, may be at higher risk for adverse health events. In this review, researchers sought to identify frequency and causes of diagnostic error of vulnerable populations presenting to the emergency department with cardiovascular or cerebrovascular/neurological symptoms. Black patients presenting with cardiovascular symptoms had significantly higher odds of diagnostic error. Other demographic factors did not show similar associations, nor did studies of patients with cerebrovascular/neurological symptoms.
Rice S, Carr K, Sobiesuo P, et al. Lancet Infect Dis. 2023;23:e228-e239.
Health care-associated infections continue to be one of the most common health care-related complications. This systematic review including 67 studies identified several cost-effective interventions addressing health care-associated infections, including screening high-risk individuals, universal decolonization in intensive care units, hand hygiene, environmental cleaning, and surveillance. The authors found limited evidence evaluating the cost-effectiveness of other strategies such as education and training or use of personal protective equipment.
Damiani G, Altamura G, Zedda M, et al. BMJ Open. 2023;13:e065301.
Artificial intelligence (AI) is increasingly used to identify and prevent patient safety threats. This review focuses on AI used to reduce medication errors in the primary care setting. Most studies targeted the prescribing stage, and the main category of AI was computerized decision support system.
No results.
Newspaper/Magazine Article
Lovelace B, Jr, Kopf M. NBC. April 11, 2023.
Shortages of life-saving cancer drugs have been a problem for many years and were exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic. This news article reports that low profitability of manufacturing generic drugs contributes to this shortage. Until these cancer drugs are available, many patients will receive no treatment, or treatment that is less than ideal.
Newspaper/Magazine Article
Gillispie-Bell V. USA Today. April 14, 2023.
Structural racism and implicit biases can lead to poor quality of care and adverse outcomes among Black women. This article describes the experience of a Black OB/GYN patient whose concerns about abdominal pain during her pregnancy were not thoroughly evaluated; clinicians also missed risk factors placing her at risk of spontaneous preterm birth.
Multi-use Website
GoodDx.
Effective feedback is an important component of individual, team and organizational learning in order to achieve safe diagnosis. GoodDx.org houses a variety of diagnostic performance feedback resources for use by clinicians, patient safety professionals, educators and patients. The website includes resources targeted towards a multitude of clinical specialties and organizational needs and readiness.
Farnborough, UK: Healthcare Safety Investigation Branch. March 2023.
Patients receiving hemodialysis are at risk of complications, including air embolus. This report describes how unfamiliar equipment and lack of standardized training contributed to the death of a dialysis patient due to air embolus. Safety recommendations include changes in medical education on how to handle uncertainty in clinical settings and amending dialysis guidelines to include risk of air embolus associated with unclamped central venous catheters.
Newspaper/Magazine Article
Moorehead LD. Outpatient Surgery. April 5, 2023.
Retained surgical items (RSIs) are considered “never events” but continue to be a source of patient harm. This article discusses the various factors that increase risk of RSIs and strategies to prevent them, such as a consistent counting process and fostering a culture of safety that encourages speaking up and a non-punitive response to errors.
This Month’s WebM&Ms
WebM&M Cases
Spotlight Case
Commentary by Michael Leonardo Amashta, MD, and David K. Barnes, MD, FACEP |
This case involves a procedural sedation error in a 3-year-old patient who presented to the Emergency Department with a left posterior hip dislocation. The commentary summarizes the indications and risks of procedural sedation in non-surgical settings and highlights the value of implementing system-wide safety protocols and practices to prevent medication administration errors during high-risk procedures.
WebM&M Cases
Charleen Singh, PhD, MSN/ED, FNP-BC, CWOCN, RN and Brent Luu, PharmD, BCACP |
This case represents a known but generally preventable complication of calcium chloride infusion, eventually necessitating surgical amputation of the patient’s left fourth (ring) finger. The commentary discusses the importance of correctly identifying IV fluids as irritants or vesicants, risks associated with the use of vesicants such as calcium chloride, and the role of early recognition of infiltration and extravasation and symptom management to minimize tissue damage and accelerate healing.
WebM&M Cases
Spotlight Case
Barbara Resnick, PhD, CRNP, and Marie Boltz, PhD, CRNP |
This Spotlight Case highlights two cases of falls in older patients in nursing homes. The commentary discusses how risk factors for falls should be considered in care planning and approaches to fall prevention in long-term care settings.
This Month’s Perspectives
Annual Perspective
Jawad Al-Khafaji, MD, MHSA, Merton Lee, PhD, PharmD, Sarah Mossburg, RN, PhD |
Throughout 2022, AHRQ PSNet has shared research that elucidates the complex nature of misdiagnosis and diagnostic safety. This Year in Review explores recent work in diagnostic safety and ways that greater safety may be promoted using tools developed to improve diagnostic practices.
Interview
Drs. Susan McGrath and George Blike discuss surveillance monitoring and its challenges and opportunities.
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