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time to address their own emotional
needs after an event. This also
improves patient safety. The research
suggests that the CRP approach is less
expensive and results in higher patient
and physician satisfaction.
Oregon hospitals are embracing this
new approach. Since September 2016,
four Oregon hospitals have been
working with the Oregon Patient
Safety Commission to pioneer use
of full-featured CRPs: Columbia
Memorial Hospital, Grande Ronde
Hospital, Providence St. Vincent
Medical Center, and Salem Health.
This Oregon Collaborative on
Communication and Resolution
Program brings expert faculty from
across the U.S. to assist the hospitals
to develop robust event reporting,
event investigation and analysis, and
peer support programs. In addition,
hospitals in the Collaborative are
building their skills at communicating
openly with patients and families and
working toward resolution. Other
Oregon hospitals are implementing
programs to improve their response
to patients and families when things
don’t go as planned.
Additional support for the CRP
approach is available from two Oregon
Patient Safety Commission programs.
The Patient Safety Reporting Program
(PSRP) supports learning from events
to make care safer for future patients.
PSRP invites hospitals to voluntarily
share information about patient
harm events and their strategies for
prevention (no patient identifying
information is shared). OPSC provides
consultation to hospitals as they work
to design safer systems of care for the
next patient.
5 Questions Patients Ask
Although every situation is
unique, these are the questions
that facilities should be prepared
to answer after an unexpected
outcome:
•
What happened?
•
Why did it happen?
•
Was it preventable?
•
What will it mean for my
treatment and follow-up care?
•
What steps are you taking
to improve care for future
patients?
In the event that medical error
harmed the patient, the facility
should be prepared to both
apologize and discuss appropriate
restitution.
The Early Discussion and Resolution
(EDR) Program supports open
communication with patients and
families when care does not go as
planned. An open conversation
between healthcare providers and
patients about what happened can
bring resolution to everyone. In the
conversation, the hospital can respond
to the patient’s questions (see box,
The 5 Questions Patients Ask), as well
as offer an apology and emotional
support. If the harm resulted from
medical error or if the hospital is not
proud of its care, the conversation
can cover compensation or other
restitution. Patients can also request
an EDR conversation with a hospital
and many other medical providers.
H
For more information, visit the Oregon
Patient Safety Commission online,
oregonpatientsafety.org, or call
503-928-6158.