Our Falls Prevention Team; Greg Jones: Named Outstanding Nurse

More documents

Recommendations

Info

Partners in fall preventionAt St. Francis Regional Medical Center, safety is our firstpriority. One way we work to keep our patients safe isthrough our falls prevention team. It's a goal that we takeseriously, and we're seeing results.The older we get, the more at risk of falling we become.But never dismiss a fall with injury as something onlyyour grandparents need to worry about, especiallywhile in the hospital.Falls are the number one reason for patient injuries inhospitals. Accidents can be caused by many factorsincluding old age, new medicines, postsurgery weakness,stress, anxiety and being in an unknown environment. St.Francis Regional Medical Center takes patient safety andfalls so seriously that a falls prevention team was formedto minimize the accidents, especially falls with harm.Upon arrival, all patients are evaluated for their risk offalling. Fall risk patients are fitted in red socks, and a redflag is placed prominently outside their door. Education isprovided for patients and families, and signage is placednear the call light that reads “Call — Don’t Fall!”encouraging patients to call for help to move around. Thefalls team uses verbal repetition to remind at-risk patientsof the proper safety procedures for prevention.“The culture of St. Francis is different from otherplaces I’ve worked,” said Nicole Larson, RN, supervisor,Inpatient Care. “We take [falls] very seriously; it’s alwaysin the forefront. Most hospitals have an inpatient fallsplan in place, but our outpatient departments are just asinvested in falls prevention.”“Patients might get sick of hearing it over and over,but we don’t care because it’s so important that wekeep [them] safe,” said Alina Vogel, RN, InpatientCare. “We also engage the patient’s family. We tell themwhat the risk of falling is [for] the patient and howimportant it is to call staff whenever a patient needs tomove.”Erin Kiernan-Johnson, RN, qualityimprovement specialist, agrees.“Continuity is critical in our falls work.If you are admitted to the EmergencyDepartment, taken to Diagnostics for anMRI and then admitted as an inpatient,you’ll be asked the same questions as youtransition from one area to the next.It’s repetitive, but it’s important,” she said.Everyone’s responsibilityKnowledge of falls is not limited to thefalls prevention team — it’s a topic atnew-employee orientation at St. Francis,making all staff knowledgeable andaware.“Falls prevention is everyone’sresponsibility,” said Greg Jones, RN,supervisor, Emergency Department. “Thefalls team is represented by staff fromevery department. It doesn’t matter ifyou’re cleaning the patient’s room,registering him or her for a procedure orhelping him or her to the bathroom, weare all responsible for our patients’ safety.”Finding answersThe team is challenged with finding more aggressivetactics in identifying at-risk patients, especially thoseaffected by medicine. In a pilot program developed lastyear, the hospital’s Pharmacy department piloted a plan tomeet personally with at-risk patients for an evaluation.2 partners in health
Upon arrival, all St. Francis patients areevaluated for their risk of falling. Aggressiveeducation, patient rounding and plannedtoileting are just a few activities that play amajor role in minimizing falls. Pictured at left:Paula Giesen, RN, assists Judi Schulte.On the cover: Everyone is responsible forpatient safety at St. Francis. Pictured left toright are members of the hospital’s falls team:Ross Fishman, pharmacy, Nicole Larson, RN,inpatient care, and Greg Jones, RN,emergency services.before they try to move. We take this veryseriously. We don’t want anyone to fall.”The pilot program was considered asuccess and is now being integrated intostandard care.Every evening, the night pharmacist reviewed inpatients’medicines. Patients with five or more active and dispensedmeds were flagged as a fall risk. The next morning, the daypharmacist reviewed the flagged profiles. Medicines and vitalsigns were studied to determine sedation levels, blood pressureand heart rate.“We visit the patients in their room,” said Ross Fishman,pharmacy coordinator. “I ask if they’ve felt dizzy or overlysedated since they’ve been admitted to the hospital. If theanswer is yes, I assess whether the medicine is to blame andthen contact the patient’s provider to communicate myconcern. If the answer is no, I remind them to call for helpAction in placeIn addition to aggressive education andmessages for patients, the staff integratesproactive ways to work with patients.Activities such as patient rounding andplanned toileting play a major role inminimizing falls.“Sometimes patients feel they’re being aburden to staff,” Jones explained. “If I roundon a patient, I will stop by and ask if he orshe needs anything. If they say no, I tell themthat I’ll be back in 30 minutes to ask thesame thing. Then they understand that we’recommitted to keeping them safe.”Bathroom assistance has a similaroutcome. “More falls happen when people are on the way tothe bathroom than any other time,” Vogel said. “If they’retaking new medicines or dealing with a medical issue thataffects toileting habits, it’s important to stop in their roomevery few minutes to check on them.”“I do for our patients what I would want for my ownfamily,” Jones said. “If my parents were patients, I would wantthem treated with dignity and respect. And I would wantthem to be safe.”8 Learn more about our fall prevention program and othersafety measures by visiting stfrancis-shakopee.com.Fall 2012 stfrancis-shakopee.com 3
Page 4 and 5: Why Bedsidebarcoding is importantIf
Page 6 and 7: What your provider wants you to kno
Page 9 and 10: TCO opens clinicin ShakopeeTwin Cit
Page 12 and 13: Make the most of yourdoctor visitNe
Page 15 and 16: find a primary care doctorVisit stf

Our Falls Prevention Team; Greg Jones: Named Outstanding Nurse

You also want an ePaper? Increase the reach of your titles

Delete template?

Save as template?