NMBI Patient Safety 2

Question 1

What is a 'near miss' in healthcare?

Accepted Answer

An event that could have resulted in harm to a patient but was prevented or did not reach the patient

Answer

A near miss is an unplanned event that did not result in harm but had the potential to do so. Reporting and analysing near misses is crucial for patient safety as they reveal system vulnerabilities before actual harm occurs.

Question 2

What is the WHO Surgical Safety Checklist and when is it used?

Accepted Answer

A three-phase checklist (Sign In, Time Out, Sign Out) used before, during, and after surgical procedures to reduce errors and complications

Answer

The WHO Surgical Safety Checklist has three phases: Sign In (before anaesthesia), Time Out (before incision), and Sign Out (before the patient leaves the operating room). It verifies patient identity, procedure, site, allergies, equipment, and team communication.

Question 3

What is the National Early Warning Score (NEWS) system used for in Irish hospitals?

Accepted Answer

To detect early signs of clinical deterioration by scoring vital signs, enabling timely escalation and intervention

Answer

NEWS assigns scores to vital signs (respiratory rate, oxygen saturation, temperature, blood pressure, heart rate, consciousness level). A higher aggregate score indicates greater clinical risk, triggering escalation protocols and more frequent monitoring.

Question 4

What is the purpose of a root cause analysis (RCA) following a serious patient safety incident?

Accepted Answer

To identify the underlying systemic causes of the incident and recommend changes to prevent recurrence

Answer

RCA is a structured investigation method that goes beyond individual actions to identify systemic factors that contributed to an incident. It examines organisational, environmental, and process factors to make recommendations that address root causes rather than symptoms.

Question 5

What are the key principles of infection prevention and control in nursing?

Accepted Answer

Standard precautions including hand hygiene, use of PPE, safe handling of sharps, environmental cleaning, and respiratory hygiene

Answer

Standard precautions apply to all patient care regardless of diagnosis. They include hand hygiene (the single most effective measure), appropriate use of PPE, safe sharps disposal, environmental cleaning, cough etiquette, and safe handling of linen and waste.

NMBI Practice Test

NMBI Practice Test

NMBI Patient Safety 2