Specimen Integrity
Improving the accuracy of patient identification has been the #1 National Patient Safety Goal with Joint Commission for many years, including 2014. After coming to the realization the there has been a significant number of errors on the Medical Surgical Progressive Care Unit, I decided to implement a unit based trial to decrease and hope in eliminating specimen errors. After a few months of trialing a new process for labeling on MS PCU, there was a needed change that was noted throughout the hospital, so myself and a few other members of QSA put together a small laboratory task-force sub-committee. Working along side other Quality Safety Advocates, we began a Laboratory Campaign hospital-wide initiative in rolling out a new practice of sending loose labels to the lab.
In conjunction with my project I found that the Specimen Integrity Policy needed updated to reflect the changes in specimen collection that occurred because of my project. In my career experience, I have worked in a variety of hospitals across the United States. Each state is slightly different in the Scope of Practice that the Registered Nurse is allowed to practice. Also, every hospital is different in the way a policy or a practice would be carried out. Since it is nearly impossible to memorize all of the differences in scopes and practices, I became a very policy and procedure cautious nurse in my practice. Having policies that instruct and guide an individual on the best practice, this makes for a safer environment for the patients that we care for.
In conjunction with my project I found that the Specimen Integrity Policy needed updated to reflect the changes in specimen collection that occurred because of my project. In my career experience, I have worked in a variety of hospitals across the United States. Each state is slightly different in the Scope of Practice that the Registered Nurse is allowed to practice. Also, every hospital is different in the way a policy or a practice would be carried out. Since it is nearly impossible to memorize all of the differences in scopes and practices, I became a very policy and procedure cautious nurse in my practice. Having policies that instruct and guide an individual on the best practice, this makes for a safer environment for the patients that we care for.