Stay Alert To Reduce Errors and Improve Patient Safety

Many people around the U.S. are really tired of dealing with snow and ice.

School closings, delays, short staffing, reckless drivers, and snow plows seem to be a part of every day vocabulary. As I've been out and about on roads and highways I can't help but think about how many hours the snow plow drivers are logging. If you’ve turned on the news you see and hear stories about drivers pushing heavy snow down roads that destroy mailboxes along the road and interviews with drivers to see how they stay alert and focused during the long days.
 
I don't know about you but snow plow drivers staying alert and focused seems very important, especially if you're one of the cars out on the roadway with them. When I think about this I have to compare to our medical professionals and their role in patient safety. When healthcare workers dealing with medications and patient care become exhausted, their ability to stay focused and alert becomes a concern. Fatigue greatly increases the chances of making errors that can result in patient harm.
 
If I'm the patient I would be as concerned as being on the road with a fatigued snow plow driver. With staffing shortages and increased workloads it's easy for fatigue to settle in and errors to occur, so what is the solution for dealing with fatigue? I know this is a loaded and complex question. In a perfect world there would be a more than ample supply of healthcare professionals, shorter work days and fewer patients.
 

What about simple solutions and strategies for an imperfect world?

I think of things like making supplies more accessible to nurses so they're not walking from one end of a unit to the other to grab a supply and then walking all the way back to where a patient is located. Examining work flow and how many steps, twists, and turns are required to retrieve supplies or medications. Implementing anti-fatigue mats wherever there is standing for short or lengthy periods of time. Lightening the load of carts and totes to make them easier to carry or push. Providing proper lighting is important for seeing what you’re doing but also for eye strain which increases fatigue. These are realistic and simple ways to reduce fatigue.
 
It is important to encourage others to speak up and suggest improvements. All of the technological advancements and processes will not be helpful if health care professionals are too exhausted to utilize them.