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PATIENT SAFETY
As a patient of LifeCare Medical Center, your safety is our
top priority. When you or your family member is a patient, you
want to be sure you receive the best and safest care possible.
Our health care facilities and health care professionals are
committed to providing the most excellent care for you and your
family. We ask you and your families to join us to make sure
that our care meets your needs and encourage you to let us know
when it does not.
Key Safety Highlights
To make your health care visit safe we have many steps in
place to assure you receive safe and reliable care:
Your safety is central to every aspect within our organization.
It is the top priority at all levels including administration,
physicians, and staff.
• We have a patient safety committee in place to coordinate
and guide priorities and use strong communications and teamwork.
• We participate in the Leapfrog Group Survey. Leapfrog is
coalition of more than 100 public and private organizations that
share our commitment to provide the safest healthcare possible.
• Our hospital, laboratory, home health and hospice agencies
have achieved and maintain Joint Commission on the Accreditation
of Heath Care Organizations (JCAHO) accreditation.
www.jointcommission.org
• We participate in state and national quality measures which
are publicly reported.
• All physicians and nurses within our organization are board
licensed and participate in continuing education.
• We have joined the Minnesota Alliance for Patient Safety
initiative to provide “My Medicine List” to members of our
community. We encourage you to pick up a medicine list at your
pharmacy, the clinic, or ask for one here at the hospital. Write
all of your medications down on the list and keep it current.
Bring it along to all of your health care appointments so that
we have the information we need to provide the safest care.
• We participate in Minnesota Hospital Association’s Safety
Calls to Action to provide the most current, evidence based care
in preventing adverse healthcare events.
• We have begun implementation of an electronic medical record.
• We routinely practice and improve emergency preparedness
procedures with city, county, state and regional emergency
response organizations to respond to natural, accidental and
intentional disasters.
COMMUNICATION
One of LifeCare’s goals is to encourage and support open and
honest communication with you, your family, and your health care
team.
We participate in the Minnesota Hospital Association’s Patient
Safety Registry. This provides us with the latest safety
information about adverse health events from around the state.
It is our policy to be open and honest with you and your family
by informing you of the potential results of your care,
including unexpected results.
What You Can Do to Help Us Ensure Your Safety
Everyone has a role in making health care safe – doctors,
nurses, technicians, support staff, administration, family
members, and especially you!!
LifeCare Medical Center has many checks in place to keep you
safe and prevent errors with your care, but we also need you to
work with us to keep you safe. Research shows that patients and
their families who are more involved with their care feel that
they are safer, get better results, and are more satisfied. To
become an active, involved, and informed member of the health
care team, we recommend that you:
• Speak up if you have questions or concerns, and if you don’t
understand, ask again. Write down any questions about your
condition, treatment, or care. It’s your body and you have a
right to know.
• Pay attention to the care you are receiving. Make sure you’re
getting the right treatments and medications by the right health
care professionals. Don’t assume anything. Encourage
hand-washing for yourself, your visitors, and your health care
staff. Feel free to ask a caregiver if they have washed their
hands before caring for you.
• Educate yourself about your diagnosis, the medical tests you
are undergoing, and your treatment plan.
• Ask a trusted family member or a friend to be your advocate.
• Know what medications you take and why you take them.
Medication errors are the most common health care mistakes.
Bring your My Medicine List to all health care appointments. Ask
questions if your medications look different than they did
before.
• Use a hospital, clinic, or other type of health care
organization that has undergone a rigorous on-site evaluation
against established, state-of-the art quality and safety
standards, such as that provided by the Joint Commission.
• Participate in all decisions about your treatment. You are the
center of the health care team. If something looks wrong……SPEAK
UP!
HELPFUL RESOURCES
The Minnesota Alliance for Patient Safety
http://www.mnpatientsafety.org
20 Tips to Help Prevent Medical Errors
http://www.ahrq.gov/consumer/20tips.htm
20 Tips to Prevent Medical Errors in Children
http://www.ahrq.gov/consumer/20tipkid.htm
Ways You Can Help Your Family Prevent Medical Errors
http://www.ahrq.gov/consumer/5tipseng/5tips.htm
Five Steps to Safer Health Care
http://www.ahrq.gov/consumer/5steps.htm
Institute for Safe Medicine Practice ‘Alerts for Consumers’
http://www.ismp.org/Pages/Consumer.html
National Council on Patient Information and Education
http://www.talkaboutrx.org
National Patient Safety Foundation
http://www.npsf.org/
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