Patient Safety Resource Center

Healthcare Technology Foundation
Q: How do I keep myself safe with home infusion?
A: This question is answered with several specific recommendations in the new brochure from the Healthcare Technology Foundation and ECRI Institute. The brochure is available in English, see the link below.

Home Infusion Safety (English - .pdf, 686 Kb)
Home Infusion Safety (Spanish - .pdf, 652 Kb)
Infusion Pumps: A Safety Guide for Patients and Caregivers - An ECRI Institute and HTF partnered Video

Q: How do I keep myself safe with home ventilation?
A: This question is answered with several specific recommendations in the new brochure from the Healthcare Technology Foundation and ECRI Institute. The brochure is available in English and Spanish, see links below.

Home Ventilation Safety (English - .pdf, 628 Kb)
Home Ventilation Safety (Spanish - .pdf, 624 Kb)

Q: Can I take my home medical device with me to the hospital?
A: That question and others commonly asked by anyone with an apnea monitor, infusion pump or other medical device are answered in a brochure from the Healthcare Technology Foundation. The brochure is available in English and Spanish, see links below.

Home Medical Device brochure (English - .pdf, 869 Kb)
Home Medical Device brochure (Spanish - .pdf, 891 Kb)

Q: What concerns should I have with oxygen therapy?
A: Please see the new brochure from the Healthcare Technology Foundation detailing the usage, risks, and safety practices involved with oxygen therapy. The brochure is available in English and Spanish, see links below.

Oxygen Therapy brochure (English - .pdf, 226 Kb)
Oxygen Therapy brochure (Spanish - .pdf, 929 Kb)

Q: How do I keep myself safe with home dialysis?
A: This question is answered with several specific recommendations in the new brochure from the Healthcare Technology Foundation and ECRI Institute. The brochure is available in English, see links below.

Home Hemodialysis Safety (English - .pdf, 890 Kb)
Home Hemodialysis Safety (Spanish - .pdf, 912 Kb)

Agency for Healthcare Quality and Research (http://www.ahrq.gov/)
Guide helps hospitals engage patients and families in their health care
Research shows that when patients are engaged in their health care, safety and quality can improve measurably. To promote stronger engagement, AHRQ developed the Guide to Patient and Family Engagement in Hospital Quality and Safety, a tested, evidence-based resource to help hospitals work as partners with patients and families to improve quality and safety.

Q: How can I make sure I get safe healthcare?
A: 20 Tips to Help Prevent Medical Errors

General tips for consumers on safe healthcare:
http://www.ahrq.gov/consumer/

ECRI Institute (www.ECRI.org)
Q: How can I decide whether to join a clinical trial?
A: http://www.ecri.org/Documents/Clinical_Trials_Patient_Reference_Guide.pdf

General patient information resources:
https://www.ecri.org/Patients/Pages/default.aspx

Family and Patient Bulimia Information and Guide:
http://www.bulimiaguide.org/

Q: High dose chemotherapy and stem cell therapy for breast cancer treatment?
https://www.ecri.org/Documents/Information_for_Patients/High-Dose_Chemotherapy_with_Bone_Marrow_Transplant_for_Metastatic_Breast_Cancer.pdf

Food and Drug Administration (FDA)
Home Use Device Initiative

FDA's Consumer Magazine

Information for Patients

Home Use Devices and Power Outages

FDA Patient Safety News

Institute for Medicine (IOM) (http://www.iom.edu)

Institute for Safe Medicine Practices (ISMP) (http://www.ismp.org)

National Library of Medicine (http://www.nlm.nih.gov/)
A complete Drug, Supplements, and Herbal information resource:
http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/druginformation.html

National Patient Safety Foundation (http://www.npsf.org/)

Patient Safety Organizations (http://www.pso.ahrq.gov/)
Q: What are Patient Safety Organizations?
A: Patient Safety Organizations (PSOs) are new entities that will be recognized through a proposed rule making by the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ). PSOs will contract with hospitals to receive and analyze a variety of patient safety events with the ultimate purpose of making recommendations to the client hospital and hospitals at large with respect to safety improvements. PSOs will also integrate their individual patient safety event data to provide the benefit of a wider view of important events. A key feature of the PSO concept is protection of patient safety work product from disclosure. It is also important to note that provider participation in the PSO process is voluntary—at least for now.

Sacred Heart University (http://onlineprograms.sacredheart.edu/)
Q: How do you define a patient safety culture?
A: http://onlineprograms.sacredheart.edu/resource/nursing/defining-patient-safety-culture

Reducing the fire hazard of smoking when oxygen is present:
http://www1.va.gov/vhapublications/ViewPublication.asp?pub_ID=1407

Veterans Affairs, Veteran Health Administration- National Center for Patient Safety (NCPS) (www.patientsafety.va.gov/)
An organization established to develop and nurture a culture of safety throughout the Veterans Health Administration. Our goal is the nationwide reduction and prevention of inadvertent harm to patients as a result of their care.
Q: How can I ensure Correct Site Surgery?
A: Ensuring Correct Surgery Course (.pdf, 1.35 Mb)

Reducing the fire hazard of smoking when oxygen is present:
http://www1.va.gov/vhapublications/ViewPublication.asp?pub_ID=1407

Tent Cards

Q: Are there simple, easily produced reminder pieces that can play a role in patient safety?
A: Yes, one such item is the "tent card", a folded single sheet that is self-standing and provides brief reminder material. Appropriate placement might include desks, office side tables, break areas, conference or cafeteria tables, patient tables, etc.

The Foundation has produced several variations on tent cards that address (1) Hand Hygiene, (2) Time Outs, and (3) Joint Commission National Patient Safety Goals. These designs, offered in PowerPoint format, may be used as-is or modified as you like, such as adding your hospital logo or adding to or changing the text. However, we do request that the credit to the Healthcare Technology Foundation remains in place if they are used substantially as provided.

Reminder pieces such as these, as well as posters, badge hangers, pocket cards, buttons, etc. may have some value in keeping attention on and refreshing ideas about safety and quality issues. They also have limitations including just becoming part of the background visual noise or visual overload, or otherwise not registering in the minds of the intended recipients of the information. However such items probably are not harmful unless they become a substitute or excuse for taking more substantive action. Despite limitations, reminder pieces are popular and can be an appropriate part of a more comprehensive patient safety effort.

Hand Hygiene.ppt (.ppt, 186 Kb)
Time Outs.ppt (.ppt, 192 Kb)
National Patient Safety Goals.ppt (.ppt, 130 Kb)