Last week we had the opportunity to speak to the Nurse Manager from our local hospital. She talked to us about the Joint Commission (JC) and the role the commission plays in patient and hospital safety. According to their website, "The Joint Commission survey process is data-driven, patient-centered and focused on evaluating actual care processes. The objectives of the survey are not only to evaluate the organization, but to provide education and “good practice” guidance that will help staff continually improve the organization’s performance.". This means that when the JC surveys hospitals, they look at data from patient charts (collected by health professionals) about what care is given to patients, such as tests being ordered, who the patient's nurse is and how the patient is doing overall. The health professional then goes and enters the collected data into computers or systems such as Electronic Medical Records to help track what care is given to patients, and in turn relays patient information and care processes to other nurses and doctors to minimize communication errors and breakdowns between healthcare professionals, as communication errors/breakdowns can cause medical errors. The Joint Commission then collects the entered data to review for their accreditation process.The surveyors also survey patients on their feelings about the level of care quality they are receiving, and actually observe how doctors and nurses practice care in everyday healthcare situations. If good notes, good patient care and good healthcare processes are noted by the Joint Commission upon review, the hospital is more likely to become accredited by the JC. To be an accredited hospital by the Joint Commission, the surveyors must deem it safe for patients and make sure that care is always improving in the hospital.
Being safe is something all hospitals strive for. The accreditation from the JC is a sign that the hospital is safe and care within the hospital is improving constantly, and also serves as a 'badge' that the hospital is working on reducing the number, severity and frequency of medical errors. The visit from the Nurse Manager was very positive, as it made us feel that professionals in hospitals (even in local areas) are all doing something to try and make medical error a thing of the past.
For more information on the Joint Commission, what they do and how hospitals become accredited, please visit: http://www.jointcommission.org/
Being safe is something all hospitals strive for. The accreditation from the JC is a sign that the hospital is safe and care within the hospital is improving constantly, and also serves as a 'badge' that the hospital is working on reducing the number, severity and frequency of medical errors. The visit from the Nurse Manager was very positive, as it made us feel that professionals in hospitals (even in local areas) are all doing something to try and make medical error a thing of the past.
For more information on the Joint Commission, what they do and how hospitals become accredited, please visit: http://www.jointcommission.org/