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MUSC to focus on forbidden abbreviations MUSC recognizes National Patient Safety Week annually. During the week of March 6-12, MUSC recognized the national safety goals and specifically focused on education concerning MUSC-prohibited abbreviations, medications that share look-alike/sound-alike characteristics, improved handwashing, and prevention of patient falls. The week’s activities included: patient safety awareness posters on units, as chart inserts, and as broadcast messages and Infection Control demonstrated hand hygiene effectiveness in the cafeteria hallway from 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. each day and also visited individual units to discuss current infection control issues with staff.  In mid-March the application of the national patient safety goals will be presented to the chief residents. The National Patient Safety Foundation (NPSF) is committed to making patient safety a national priority in response to medical errors that spark public concern. Medical errors often result from a small series of failures that individually don’t cause an accident, but together begin the process toward error.  According to the Institute of Healthcare Improvement, a few proven interventions implemented on a wide scale can help health care institutions avoid more than 100,000 deaths annually.  The Joint Commission for Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations believes that root causes for many sentinel events are influenced by how health care providers communicate, how orientation and training for health care providers flow, and how patient needs are assessed. MUSC strives to provide an environment that ensures the safety of all individuals by promoting a proactive, people-friendly and blame-free culture that facilitates the reporting of hazards, errors, near misses, concerns and otherwise unsafe conditions within the Medical Center. Patient safety is the responsibility of every employee regardless of occupational code or position and implementation of the fundamental national patient safety initiatives promotes a systematized approach to patient safety. Communication is vital. Health care professionals can adapt information to patients’ needs, including non-English speaking patients, by using simple and clear verbal and written language. Staff should focus on key messages and repeat them.  Everyone has a role in patient safety and everyone can contribute to its successes.  By constantly learning and communicating with each other, caregivers, organizations, and patients improve patient safety. MUSC seeks an effective partnership with patients to ensure a safer experience with the health care system by becoming more involved and informed in their care.  Patients should: Become an informed health care consumer and share information honestly and concisely with family and friends. Keep track of medical history.  Bring a list of questions and concerns to each office visit. Be sure to get clear explanations. Work as a team with the doctor and health care professionals. Bring glasses and/or hearing aid to visits. Involve a family member or friend and bring them to a visit. Follow the agreed upon treatment and update the doctor with any new information. In terms of the MUSC Tactical Plan, strengthening safety practices directly impacts the area of improving quality, safety and effectiveness of care. Second, creating an increasingly safe environment for patients and staff will impact MUSC’s status as a “provider of choice” for patients and as an “employer of choice” for staff.  Third, improving safe practices directly impacts the financial performance of the hospital since they help professionals avoid the unnecessary costs associated with preventable patient complications and staff injuries. MUSC Medical Center Prohibited Abbreviations Use of Abbreviations applies to all clinicians/staff Drug names will not be abbreviated (AZT, HCTZ, NEO). No abbreviations on Informed Consent. These abbreviations are prohibited in any form: ad.......................................................................right ear as........................................................................left ear au.......................................................................both ears mcg................................................................microgram od..................................................once daily, right eye os............................................................................left eye ou.........................................................................both eyes qd.......................................................................every day qod.........................................................every other day U or u.....................................................unit; umbilicus ìg or ug............................................................microgram IU........................................................international unit x3d...............for three days or other number of days ss.............sliding scale (insulin) or 1/2 apothecary Ms, MSO4..................................misread as magnesium  MgSO4...........................misread as Morphine Sulfate Do not write a whole number with a trailing zero. Use:  5 mg          Not:  5.0 mg Do not write a decimal point without leading zero. Use: 0.5 mg       Not: .5 mg 2005 National Patient Safety Goals and MUSC’s response Improve accuracy of patient identification. Use patient’s name and date of birth only. Never use the room number. Improve the effectiveness of communication among caregivers. Read back verbal orders, don’t just repeat them. Post prohibited abbreviations signs on wall-a-roos and on the back of the MD order form in patient’s chart. Improve safety of medication use. Post look a-like/ sound a-like posters. Improve safety of infusion pumps. Added feature to pumps for free-flow protection. Reduce risk of health care-acquired infections. Conduct handwashing audits and use evidence based practices in handling invasive devices. Reduce the risk of patient harm resulting from falls. Increase consistency in evaluation of fall risk and implement fall precautions. Reconcile medication across the continuum of care—introduced by JCAHO in 2005, full compliance by 2006. All medications identified and communicated to staff at each change of patient’s location. Friday, March 11, 2005 Catalyst Online is published weekly, updated as needed and improved from time to time by the MUSC Office of Public Relations for the faculty, employees and students of the Medical University of South Carolina. Catalyst Online editor, Kim Draughn, can be reached at 792-4107 or by email, catalyst@musc.edu. Editorial copy can be submitted to Catalyst Online and to The Catalyst in print by fax, 792-6723, or by email to petersnd@musc.edu or catalyst@musc.edu. To place an ad in The Catalyst hardcopy, call Community Press at 849-1778.