Work

Real-Time Reporting of Small Operational Failures in Nursing Care

Year: 2016

Type: article

Abstract: Addressing microsystem problems from the frontline holds promise for quality enhancement. Frontline providers are urged to apply quality improvement; yet no systematic approach to problem detection has been tested. This study investigated a self-report approach to detecting operational failures encountered during patient care.Methods. Data were collected from 5 medical-surgical units over 4 weeks. Unit staff documented operational failures on a small distinctive Pocket Card. Frequency distributions for the operational failures in each category were calculated for each hospital overall and disaggregated by shift. Rate of operational failures on each unit was also calculated.Results. A total of 160 nurses participated in this study reporting a total of 2,391 operational failures over 429 shifts. Mean number of problems per shift varied from 4.0 to 8.5 problems with equipment/supply problems being the most commonly reported category.Conclusions. Operational failures are common on medical-surgical clinical units. It is feasible for unit staff to record these failures in real time. Many types of failures were recognized by frontline staff. This study provides preliminary evidence that the Pocket Card is a feasible approach to detecting operational failures in real time. Continued research on methodologies to investigate the impact of operational failures is warranted.

Source: Nursing Research and Practice

DOI: 10.1155/2016/8416158

Authors: Kathleen R. Stevens, Robert L. Ferrer

Institution: The University of Texas at San Antonio Health Science Center

Language: English

Topic: Healthcare Quality and Management

Subfield: Health Information Management

Field: Health Professions

Domain: Health Sciences

SDG: Good health and well-being

Open Access status: gold

Estimated APC paid: $1,000