In today’s health care system, it is imperative to have data accessible to the members of the health care team in real time. In the case study that was presented a patient was tested for methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA); the lab results were negative however, the lab record was updated as the patient being positive for MRSA. It was found that this was the third time that lab results were uploaded to the wrong patient’s EHR record from the emergency room. We are going to look at the adverse trends and how it impacts patient care when the wrong lab results are posted to an EHR. In this paper we will discuss how adverse trends may occur and how to investigate them further using the decision-making process to make informed changes
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Adverse events “pose considerable challenges to an organization, both in terms of the need to respond intelligently to their occurrence and in terms of the need to deal with their aftermath” (Vincent, 2003, p. 1051). In the above-mentioned case study, the wrong chart was update to have MRSA, meaning that the patient that actually had MRSA in their urine was not placed in appropriate precautions. Therefore, increasing the risk of exposure and the spread of MRSA to employees caring for the individual who has MRSA. It is important to take a closer look at the trend data available to determine what is causing the errors in the lab results being placed on the wrong chart when a patient is admitted through the emergency …show more content…
One suggestion would be to implement a policy that states that all lab results must have the patient identifying information readily available on all patient reports throughout the hospital; this would prevent issues from occurring on other units as well. Another suggestion for immediate correction would be to create a standardized procedure for the reporting of laboratory results for patients who are admitted through the emergency room. After standardizing the policies and procedures, all staff must be provided education on the new process. I would recommend having department meetings for all of the departments throughout the hospital. By having this educational meeting, members of the individual units would be able to express their concerns regarding the new process and allow for clarifications that might be necessary in the implementation of the new
Adverse events “pose considerable challenges to an organization, both in terms of the need to respond intelligently to their occurrence and in terms of the need to deal with their aftermath” (Vincent, 2003, p. 1051). In the above-mentioned case study, the wrong chart was update to have MRSA, meaning that the patient that actually had MRSA in their urine was not placed in appropriate precautions. Therefore, increasing the risk of exposure and the spread of MRSA to employees caring for the individual who has MRSA. It is important to take a closer look at the trend data available to determine what is causing the errors in the lab results being placed on the wrong chart when a patient is admitted through the emergency …show more content…
One suggestion would be to implement a policy that states that all lab results must have the patient identifying information readily available on all patient reports throughout the hospital; this would prevent issues from occurring on other units as well. Another suggestion for immediate correction would be to create a standardized procedure for the reporting of laboratory results for patients who are admitted through the emergency room. After standardizing the policies and procedures, all staff must be provided education on the new process. I would recommend having department meetings for all of the departments throughout the hospital. By having this educational meeting, members of the individual units would be able to express their concerns regarding the new process and allow for clarifications that might be necessary in the implementation of the new