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Making Hospitals Safer
(HealthScoutNews)
-- When you go to the hospital you want to get better, not worse.
But thousands of patients are put
at risk every day by preventable medical errors that happen in
hospitals. An Institute of Medicine report released a few years
ago said that medical errors are responsible for thousands of
deaths and near-deaths every year in hospitals.
The University of Michigan Health
System hopes to remedy that with a Patient Safety Enhancement
Program that was introduced in 2000. It's meant to improve the
quality of patient care by doing research on methods to avoid
or prevent harm to patients when they're receiving medical care.
For example, program researchers
found that using antiseptic coated catheters reduced hospital
infections by 36 percent.
The program also educates and encourages
patients to protect themselves from medical errors.
Here are patient safety guidelines
from the Agency for Health Care Research and Quality:
- Speak up if you have questions
or concerns. Select a doctor you feel comfortable talking to
about your health and medical treatment.
- Keep a list of all the medicines
you take so that you can inform your doctor and pharmacist.
Your list should include over-the-counter products such as aspirin
and ibuprofen and dietary supplements such as vitamins and herbal
remedies.
- Be sure to get the results of
any test or procedure. Ask your doctor or nurse how and when
you can get those results.
- If you need hospital care, talk
with your doctor about options. If you can choose from different
hospitals, ask which one has the best care and results for your
medical condition.
- Get a full understanding from
your doctor or surgeon of what will happen if you need surgery.
Ask who will be in charge of your care while you're in hospital
and get details about the surgery and recovery. If you have
allergies or have had a previous bad reaction to anesthesia,
tell your surgeon, anesthesiologist, and nurses.
More Information
You can learn more about patient
safety at the U-M
Patient Safety Enhancement Program.
Reference
Source 101
For more information on how to prevent other diseases, use
PreventDisease.com's "Quick
Prevention Resources".
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