Healthcare Safety Toolkit Library

Violence in healthcare has escalated over the years and constitutes approximately 74% of workplace violence events reported by Bureau of Labor Statistics. It is imperative that organizational leaders develop plans to prevent violence and train staff to identify and de-escalate violent behaviors as well as respond appropriately when an event occurs. This toolkit contains many resources to help facilitate the development of comprehensive violence prevention programs within your organization.

Maternal health encompasses the health of the pregnancy, childbirth and the postpartum period in women’s healthcare. Healthcare provider’s goals in maternal care are to reduce morbidity and mortality by providing safe, quality services to the mother and her baby. This objective can be accomplished by identifying risks, educating patients and following recommended guidelines of evidence-based practice. This toolkit supplies resources to benefit in the improvement of maternal health.

Johns-Hopkins Hospital describes their organization's successful continuous patient monitoring project. The organization’s philosophy was that no patient should suffer a failure-to-rescue event and they set out to implement processes to achieve that goal. This article describes how they used technology to improve patient outcomes and failure-to-rescue events related to over-sedation.

An evidence-based, objective sedation scale that can be used to determine a patient’s level of sedation. The scale helps you rank patients from combative through non-arousable states.

Sample policy and dosing guidelines for pain management in the pediatric population developed by Children’s Minnesota using the WHO Guidelines as a reference. This sample addresses the use of opioids, non-opioid medications and alternative therapy treatment based on the level of pain in a pediatric patient.

The Institute of Medicine has defined an ADE as an “injury resulting from medical intervention related to a drug.” It’s estimated that one-third of all adverse hospital events are related to ADEs, resulting in almost two million hospital visits annually. Each year, serious adverse events, including fatalities, occur due specifically to the misuse of intravenously administered opioids in hospitals.

This letter from the Centers for Medicaid and Medicare Services (CMS) outlines the requirements for hospital medication administration, particularly IV medications and post-operative care of patients receiving intravenous opioids.

This worksheet is a component of the Guide to Developing and Managing Overdose Prevention and Take-Home Naloxone Projects, produced by Harm Reduction Coalition. It offers key points to consider and address when engaging with medical professionals and discussing an opioid management program for their hospital or clinic.

Healthcare facilities can use this assessment for practitioners who prescribe, dispense, and/or administer opioid products. The assessment tool addresses selection, dosing and patient monitoring when using opioid products. This tool was developed by the Pennsylvania Patient Safety Authority in collaboration with the Pennsylvania Medical Society.

Aggregating and analyzing the results of practitioner assessments can help healthcare facilities identify opportunities for improvement and aid in the development of targeted, high-leverage strategies to improve the safe use of opioids.

Although it is healthcare's goal to maintain a safe environment at all times, violence remains a significant concern today. It is vital to implement processes to prevent workplace violence. Security practices can include an array of methods. The following documents provide best practices and alternative approaches that may be applied when handling violent encounters.

Reducing the risk of encountering an active shooter situation is important to any business, especially healthcare. These resources provide tools on how to plan what to do in the event of an active shooter/violent situation.

Acitve shooter events are increasing more and more across the U.S. and the experts have developed tools to help the lay person identify a potential active shooter as a risk reduction strategy.

Healthcare organizations should take the possiblity of an active shooter event occuring in their facility very seriously. These resources provide key tactics on managing violent and disruptive behavior as a risk reduction process.

Active shooter training is vital for all staff in a healthcare organization as they are the eyes and ears of the facility. These resources help ensure staff are trained and prepared to address violent/aggressive behavior/situations.