Patient Safety Awareness Week, observed March 8-14, 2020, is an annual recognition event intended to encourage everyone to learn more about healthcare safety. It is an opportunity for hospitals to share their work and resources on patient safety, safety culture, and patient engagement.

Providence Medical Center and Saint John Hospital are proud of their industry acknowledgement for quality, safe care, as well as internal and external track records for safety. Providence Medical Center received an “A” grade safety rating from the Leapfrog Group, and the Healthgrades Patient Safety Excellence Award for the third consecutive year. The Healthgrade award is given to the top hospitals in the nation for providing excellence in patient safety by preventing infections, medical errors, and other preventable complications. Saint John Hospital does not meet the required elements to apply for these awards, nonetheless there is continued focus on efforts for safe and quality care. Our patients and their safety are the most important thing to the hospitals.

“When we talk about patient safety, we are talking about how hospitals and healthcare organizations protect their patients from errors, injuries, accidents, and infections,” said Renee Janssen, RN, BSN, CPHRM, CPPS, Director, Risk Management and Patient Safety. “Strong healthcare teams reduce infection rates, put checks in place to prevent mistakes, and ensure strong lines of communication between hospital staff, patients, and families.”

An example of the hospitals’ commitment to maintaining open communication for patients’ safety is the bedside shift report, according to Janssen. This actively involves the patient in discussion about their plan of care for the shift, reinforces patient education, and promotes collaboration. Patient engagement is an essential component of safe, appropriate, high quality healthcare. Hourly rounding is also in place as a best practice intervention to routinely meet patient care needs, ensure patient safety, decrease the occurrence of patient preventable events, and proactively address problems before they occur. The hospitals tie patient safety to patient experience directly every time staff speak about hourly rounding, bedside shift report, and other evidence-based clinical safety behaviors.

During Patient Safety Awareness Week – and every week – Providence Medical Center and Saint John Hospital salute their team members who work to constantly build on safety standards and keep an open door to improving, so that we can continue striving to provide consistently exceptional care for the communities served by the hospitals.