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Patients as Observers and Reporters in Support of Systems and Patient Safety

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Pediatric and Congenital Cardiac Care

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Abstract

When patients and families observe and report their healthcare experiences, they can play important roles in promoting safety and improving quality. This chapter begins with the case of a busy, well regarded medical professional associated with a patient complaint. The complaint is a means by which patients and families can be “safety promoters”. While barriers to this role exist, they may be reduced or eliminated when organizations commit to assessing their readiness to invite and address patient concerns, and build a robust infrastructure to support the effort. This chapter discusses our experience using unsolicited (voluntary) patient complaints to address unsafe systems and behaviors. We use the physician and the physician’s practice group to illustrate implementation and outcomes of interventions designed to reduce unnecessary variation in healthcare professionals’ behavior and performance that undermine a healthcare organization’s culture of safety. The chapter concludes with guidance to hospital and healthcare systems on how best to develop, implement and sustain a patient and family experience program.

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Notes

  1. 1.

    Dr. Uro and Dr. Uro’s group are hypothetical, an amalgam of actual CPPA experiences and situations.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Medical Education and Administration, Center for Patient and Professional Advocacy, Vanderbilt University Medical Center, 2135 Blakemore Avenue, Nashville, TN, 37212-3505, USA

    James W. Pichert PhD

  2. Department of Quality, Safety & Risk Prevention, Center for Patient and Professional Advocacy, Vanderbilt University Medical Center, 2135 Blakemore Avenue, Nashville, TN, 37212-3505, USA

    Gerald B. Hickson MD

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  1. James W. Pichert PhD
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  2. Gerald B. Hickson MD
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Correspondence to James W. Pichert PhD .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. School of Medicine,, University of Oslo, Oslo, Norway

    Paul R. Barach

  2. Division of Cardiac Surgery, Department of Surgery,, Division of Cardiac Surgery, Department of Surgery, Johns Hopkins All Children’s Heart Institute, All Children’s Hospital and Florida Hospital for Children, Johns Hopkins University, St. Petersburg, Tampa, Orlando, FL, USA, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, Maryland, USA

    Jeffery P. Jacobs

  3. School of Medicine, Wayne State University, Detroit, Michigan, USA

    Steven E. Lipshultz

  4. University of Toronto, The Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, Ontario, Canada

    Peter C. Laussen

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Pichert, J.W., Hickson, G.B. (2015). Patients as Observers and Reporters in Support of Systems and Patient Safety. In: Barach, P., Jacobs, J., Lipshultz, S., Laussen, P. (eds) Pediatric and Congenital Cardiac Care. Springer, London. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4471-6566-8_12

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