Safety Goals for 2009 Delineated by Joint Commission
The Joint Commission published their Patient Safety Goals for 2009. Along with these are the requirements related to each goal necessary for accreditation. The requirements for Disease-Specific Care Certification Programs are also detailed.
The new goals intend to improve overall patient safety by providing proven solutions to safety problems for healthcare organizations. Each of the requirements considers an area of opportunity for healthcare facilities to improve the safety of patients.
These new efforts will build on the Commission’s existing program, the National Patient Safety Goal, geared toward the reduction of healthcare associated infections. Further, the newest iteration of safety goals acknowledges the growing incidence of hospital acquired infections.
Three significant changes are described in the 2009 iteration which relate to reducing the incidence of healthcare associated infections that result from central line-associated bloodstream infections, surgical site infections, and multiple drug-resistant organisms (MDROs). The regulations related to the central-line infections apply not only to hospitals, but also to office-based surgery practices, home care organizations, long term care facilities, and ambulatory surgical centers.
The new requirement about surgical site infections applies to hospitals as well as office-based surgery practices and ambulatory care centers. Requirements will be phased in across a yearlong period; full implementation is marked to commence January 1, 2010.
Goals that have also been revised include reductions in the incidence of transfusions errors secondary to patient misidentification. New requirements also delineated include reducing the incidence of adverse events during surgery, increasing patient involvement with infection control, and improving the process of patient identification.
The Joint Commission releases an initial set of goals which then undergo review and modification. Development is overseen by the Sentinel Event Advisory Group, which includes experts in patient safety. Organizations are required to comply with the requirements to maintain certification or accreditation.
June 17, 2008 Related topics: Quality, Safety, Errors