Staying Compliant with the Joint Commission 2023 National Patient Safety Goals

Patient safety is a critical aspect of healthcare that directly affects the well-being of individuals seeking medical treatment. Nurses, physicians, and other healthcare providers play a crucial role in ensuring that patients receive high-quality care. To this end, the Joint Commission established the National Patient Safety Goals (NPSGs) to promote specific areas of focus for healthcare organizations to improve patient safety.

The 2023 National Patient Safety Goals, updated from the previous version in 2022, provide guidelines for healthcare providers to follow to maintain a high standard of patient safety. These goals are designed to help healthcare providers address the challenges faced in delivering quality patient care. The Joint Commission requires healthcare centers to implement these goals by December 31, 2023, to ensure the safety of patients in their care.

In this article, we will explore the key components of the Joint Commission 2023 National Patient Safety Goals and provide strategies for staying compliant with these important guidelines.

Patient Safety Goals for 2023

The 2023 National Patient Safety Goals focus on several key areas to improve patient safety, including:

1. Improving staff communication: Healthcare organizations must establish processes to ensure effective communication among staff members. This includes reporting critical results of tests and diagnostic procedures, as well as sharing information with patients and families.
2. Using medicines safely: Healthcare providers must identify and mitigate the risks associated with medication use. This includes safely labeling medications, storing them appropriately, and educating patients on their proper use.
3. Using alarms safely: Healthcare organizations must establish protocols for managing alarms to minimize the risk of alarm fatigue and ensure that alarms are appropriately prioritized.
4. Preventing infection: Healthcare providers must take measures to prevent the spread of infections. This includes implementing hand hygiene protocols and properly cleaning and disinfecting equipment. It is important to educate staff on proper hand hygiene protocols and implement electronic systems to verify hand cleaning compliance.
5. Identifying patients correctly: Healthcare organizations must implement processes to accurately identify patients and match them with their intended treatment or service.

Staff Education and Prevention

To ensure compliance with the 2023 National Patient Safety Goals, healthcare organizations must prioritize staff education and prevention efforts. This includes:

1. Ensuring all staff members are trained on the 2023 National Patient Safety Goals and their role in meeting these goals.
2. Providing ongoing education and training opportunities to staff members to reinforce safe practices and identify opportunities for improvement.
3. Encouraging a culture of safety and reporting of near-misses or errors to prevent future incidents.
4. Implementing processes to prevent errors, such as double-checking medication orders and ensuring proper labeling and identification of patients.

Hospital Equipment and Labeling

Proper labeling of hospital equipment and medication is essential for patient safety. It is imperative to label medicines in syringes and other containers to ensure that they are properly identified and administered. Healthcare providers must also take steps to prevent surgical safety issues and minimize behavioral risks that may occur during medical procedures.

To stay compliant with the 2023 National Patient Safety Goals, healthcare organizations must implement the following practices:

1. Label all medications, including those in syringes, cups, and basins, with the drug name, strength, and expiration date.
2. Label all medical devices, including those used for surgery, with the patient’s name, date, and time of use.
3. Update all labels promptly and accurately to prevent confusion and errors.
4. Use color-coded labels or other visual cues to highlight important information, such as allergies or warnings.
5. Implement protocols for recording and passing along relevant patient information to ensure accurate and timely communication between staff members.

Meeting the 2023 National Patient Safety Goals with DrKumo Remote Patient Monitoring

DrKumo remote patient monitoring (RPM) solution aligns with the 2023 National Patient Safety Goals set by the Joint Commission to improve patient safety and quality of care. By enabling patients to manage their health conditions at home, DrKumo RPM technology supports the goal of preventing infections and improving medication safety. It also helps healthcare providers to identify patients correctly and communicate more effectively with real-time data and analytics.

DrKumo is a technology leader in highly scalable, continuous, real-time remote patient monitoring solution for chronic disease management, acute care, post-operation, and hospital care at home. The company solves some of the most painful problems in healthcare with its user-friendly solution that is powered by state-of-the-art, HIPAA-compliant, mobile-enabled, continuous real-time monitoring, and AI/ML engine. The RPM technology provides patients with the convenience of managing their health conditions from their homes, while healthcare providers receive real-time intelligence for timely intervention.

DrKumo RPM solution offers a range of benefits, including improved patient outcomes, reduced hospital admissions and readmissions, and decreased healthcare costs. With a culture that is innovative, collaborative, and technology-driven, DrKumo provides effective solutions to both patients and healthcare providers. The company is committed to revolutionizing the way people access quality healthcare worldwide, and its RPM technology is at the forefront of this mission.

Read more: 5 Best Practices for Your Remote Patient Monitoring Services to Boost Patient Safety

Takeaways

In 2023, the Joint Commission’s National Patient Safety Goals will focus on improving patient safety in healthcare by addressing critical areas such as staff communication, medication safety, infection prevention, and patient identification. Healthcare organizations must prioritize staff education and prevention efforts to ensure compliance with these goals. Investing in staff education can help achieve the highest level of patient safety and prevent future incidents. It is important for healthcare providers to be aware of the purpose of the National Patient Safety Goals and inform patients about their medications, especially medicines that are not labeled. Using universal patient identifiers, selecting proper email addresses, and displaying information in a clear manner can help achieve the goals for improving hand cleaning and ensure that patients are accurately identified.

Stay informed about the 2023 National Patient Safety Goals and ask your healthcare provider about RPM options to help improve your health and safety. Contact DrKumo now.