Patient Safety & Quality Improvement Flashcards

What does the term 'never event' refer to in patient safety?

Answer: A serious preventable adverse event that should never occur in healthcare

Never events are serious, largely preventable patient safety incidents that regulatory bodies and the public expect will not occur in healthcare settings.

Which quality improvement model emphasizes defining, measuring, analyzing, improving, and controlling processes?

Answer: Six Sigma (DMAIC)

Six Sigma uses the DMAIC framework to reduce process variation and defects in healthcare quality improvement.

A CNL is reviewing HCAHPS scores. What does this survey primarily measure?

Answer: Patient perspectives on hospital care and experience

HCAHPS (Hospital Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems) is a standardized survey measuring patients' perspectives on their hospital care experience.

In applying Lean principles to a clinical unit, a CNL focuses on eliminating waste. Which of the following is an example of 'waste' in the Lean framework?

Answer: Nurses walking long distances to retrieve supplies from a poorly located storeroom

Unnecessary motion, such as walking long distances to retrieve supplies, is a form of waste that Lean methodology seeks to eliminate.

A CNL implements a bundle to prevent central line-associated bloodstream infections (CLABSIs). Which element is a standard component of the CLABSI prevention bundle?

Answer: Hand hygiene before line insertion

Hand hygiene before central line insertion is a core component of the evidence-based CLABSI prevention bundle.

Which indicator is considered a 'process measure' in quality improvement?

Answer: Percentage of patients receiving VTE prophylaxis within 24 hours of admission

Process measures track whether evidence-based care steps are being performed, unlike outcome measures that track what happened to patients.