The past week has been a reminder that patient safety is a year-round priority for health care providers on Prince Edward Island, says Keith Dewar, CEO of Health PEI.
“Canadian Patient Safety Week is a way for the health care system to recognize the work we are doing to continually improve patient safety and quality of services we provide to our patients,” said Dewar. “The active participation of our staff, physicians, and Board members is important to our year-round efforts to ensure that we are delivering services that are safe for all involved through a wide range of quality improvement initiatives.”
All Health PEI programs, services and facilities across the province participated in Patient Safety Week, offering video conferencing seminars for staff, displays highlighting various quality and safety initiatives in their facility, and circulation of information on public engagement in patient safety.
Recognition awards were given out at both the Queen Elizabeth and Prince County Hospitals to a staff member or team who demonstrated leadership in promoting quality and patient safety excellence at their workplace. The PICC Insertion Team received the award at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital (QEH) and Sandra Arsenault received the award at Prince County Hospital (PCH).
Health PEI has implemented a number of provincial initiatives to improve quality and patient safety, including a formalized quality review process, medication tracking list for patients, a provincial safety management system, as well as being involved in several national initiatives through the Canadian Patient Safety Institute.
In addition to participating in province wide initiatives, a number of facilities implemented site specific quality and patient safety initiatives. As an example, Western Hospital in Alberton has launched a patient engagement survey that is conducted with clients and discharged patients in person or by telephone. The resulting feedback has led to improvements in patient flow, facility/grounds, food services and communication. This survey is a good example of other public engagement activities done by Health PEI.
Also, the QEH Emergency Department has been working on a quality improvement project to find ways to help patients access care more rapidly. This initiative will lead to further improvements in patient flow and aid in reducing wait times for some patients. Recently, the hospital’s Laboratory Department participated in a quality improvement initiative to identify potential bottlenecks to lab efficiencies. The resulting changes have significantly improved workflow in the process of arrival and sorting of lab specimen.
“Ensuring that patients receive safe, quality health care services is a number one priority for government,” said Minister of Health and Wellness Doug Currie. “It is important that we continue to work closely with Health PEI. The meaningful discussions with staff and patients around Patient Safety will inevitably help Health PEI to enhance our healthcare service delivery.”
For more information on Health PEI’s patient safety initiatives, please visit www.healthpei.ca/patientsafety. For more information on Canadian Patient Safety Week, please visit www.asklistentalk.ca.