Question 1

The practicing nurse knows the following factor contributes to more patient injuries and death than the other factors.

Accepted Answer

Communication failures are the leading cause of preventable patient injuries and death, according to The Joint Commission.High-technology equipment is not the leading cause of preventable patient injuries and death, according to The Joint Commission.Medication administration is not the leading cause of preventable patient injuries and death, according to The Joint Commission.Performing high-risks tasks is not the leading cause of preventable patient injuries and death, according to The Joint Commission.

Question 2

A nurse applying for a job in a hospital notes that administration promotes accurate and timely reporting of errors and near misses.The facility has a multidisciplinary team to analyze this information as it becomes available and design solutions to identified problems.This nurse could infer that:

Accepted Answer

To maintain a strong culture of safety, nurses need to have ownership and a sense of personal responsibility in promoting a work environment that prioritizes patient safety.In a culture where proactive reporting of safety problems and timely reporting of errors is the norm, nurses need to feel safe from disciplinary action when they make such reports.It may or may not be true that the hospital has had some significant issues with patient safety in the past; one cannot tell from the information given.An immature safety culture should focus on teamwork and communication skills; this environment is more mature, with a focus on more advanced safety concepts.

Question 3

A chief nursing officer (CNO)has implemented a model for teamwork training in the facility.The model seems to be working in some areas but not in others.The best action by the CNO would be to:

Accepted Answer

The most important element of a teamwork training program is the support of both formal and informal leaders.The CNO should assess for any change agents within the facility who do not support the program and whose attitudes might be sabotaging the program.Informing the staff that teamwork improves safety and is expected would be part of the educational process.This information, provided in isolation, might make the staff resentful that this is being forced upon them.More education and training might be needed, but the CNO first needs to find out whether there are leaders who are not supportive of the plan.Rotating staff members to different areas would create confusion and possibly decrease patient safety because nurses could be forced to work in areas in which they had no expertise.

Question 4

A nursing manager for a cardiac unit wishes to improve collaborative teamwork to improve patient care outcomes.Which action by the manager would best accomplish this goal?

Accepted Answer

Implementing daily multidisciplinary rounds would best accomplish the goal because all members of the team would hear about each other's contributions and how each member views the patient situation.Each member of the team would feel like an important member.When collaboration occurs, patient safety improves.Creating permanent nurse-aide work groups would help with teamwork and collaboration but only between nurses and nurses' aides, so this answer is too narrow in focus.Formulating nurse-cardiologist work teams would help with teamwork and collaboration, but because it only includes two members of the multidisciplinary team, the answer is too narrow in focus.Requiring face-to-face reports between nurses would help with teamwork and collaboration but only involves the professional nursing staff, so this answer is too narrow in focus.

Question 5

A chief nursing officer (CNO)wishes to integrate the Team Strategies and Tools to Enhance Performance and Patient Safety (TeamSTEPPS)model of teamwork training into the hospital where the CNO works.The first action by the CNO should be to:

Accepted Answer

The first phase of teamwork training should be to conduct a preassessment to determine the facility's readiness to change.Using the TeamSTEPPS program, this occurs in phase 1.Designing training for selected onsite trainers would be part of phase 2, in which members are trained.Because the CNO has already decided on a specific model to use, this means that investigating specific training models has already been done.After the CNO determines readiness, phase 2 consists of a "train the trainer" approach, which is then implemented in identified high-risk areas first.This is part of phase 3.

Question 6

The nurse explains that benefits of the Patient Safety and Quality Improvement Act of 2005 include: (Select all that apply.)

Accepted Answer

One of the benefits that this act provides is being able to learn from others' mistakes through sharing of information.With information available, trends can be identified that can be resolved through program or process improvement activities.Having a large pool of data means that trends can be identified.This act does not provide financial rewards to facilities.The act does not provide for tax breaks.

Question 7

The nurse working in health care today understands the ways in which the Patient Affordable Care Act (ACA)will affect patient safety.Which are the ways this is true? (Select all that apply.)

Accepted Answer

Provisions of the ACA related to patient safety include creating incentives for hospitals to participate in PSOs, mandating reporting of safety events to PSOs, and requiring hospitals to establish patient safety evaluation systems.Exemption from patient Safety and Quality Improvement Act is not a feature of the ACA.Permitting disciplinary measures for errors and near misses is not a feature of the ACA.

Question 8

A newly hired graduate nurse is asking the preceptor why the facility uses a standardized template for change-of-shift reports.The preceptor explains that this template is used to:

Accepted Answer

Communication failures are the leading cause of patient injury and death, and change-of-shift or handoff reports are a time when communication failures often occur.Eliminating frivolous information from shift reports would certainly be beneficial, because nurses are more likely to listen to reports that are to the point, but this is not the main reason for standardizing shift report.Using a standardized handoff report does ensure that nurses all get the same information about their patients, but this is secondary to minimizing the chance of a communication failure during a high-risk time.A minor benefit of using a standardized reporting format is that it makes it easier for nurses to remember what to say, but this is secondary to minimizing the chance of a communication failure during a high-risk time.

Question 9

A nurse is explaining to a student that SBAR is a type of:

Accepted Answer

SBAR (Situation, Background, Assessment, Recommendation) is a structured communication strategy designed to improve information exchange. It is commonly used in healthcare settings to facilitate clear and concise communication among healthcare professionals.

Quiz 20: Patient Safety

The practicing nurse knows the following factor contributes to more patient injuries and death than the other factors.

A nurse applying for a job in a hospital notes that administration promotes accurate and timely reporting of errors and near misses.The facility has a multidisciplinary team to analyze this information as it becomes available and design solutions to identified problems.This nurse could infer that:

A chief nursing officer (CNO) has implemented a model for teamwork training in the facility.The model seems to be working in some areas but not in others.The best action by the CNO would be to:

A nursing manager for a cardiac unit wishes to improve collaborative teamwork to improve patient care outcomes.Which action by the manager would best accomplish this goal?

A chief nursing officer (CNO) wishes to integrate the Team Strategies and Tools to Enhance Performance and Patient Safety (TeamSTEPPS) model of teamwork training into the hospital where the CNO works.The first action by the CNO should be to:

The nurse explains that benefits of the Patient Safety and Quality Improvement Act of 2005 include: (Select all that apply.)

The nurse working in health care today understands the ways in which the Patient Affordable Care Act (ACA) will affect patient safety.Which are the ways this is true? (Select all that apply.)

A newly hired graduate nurse is asking the preceptor why the facility uses a standardized template for change-of-shift reports.The preceptor explains that this template is used to:

A nurse is explaining to a student that SBAR is a type of: