Principles of High Reliability Organizations

A recent article in Pharmacy Times reinforces the Culture of Safety portion of Readiness Rounds’ High Reliability Musts in Healthcare.

See the following infographic that contrasts and compares Pharmacy Times' The Five Principles of High Reliability Organizations in Health Care with Readiness Rounds' culture of safety processes they employ at their clients' hospitals.

1. Failures:

Reoccupation with Failure (Pharmacy Times)

"Repetitive tasks including data entry may sometimes feel mundane, but attention and good judgment is crucial to providing the best care for our patients."

Celebrating Failures (Readiness Rounds)

By recognizing that humans make mistakes and encouraging employees at all levels to speak up when they think something might be going wrong, High Reliability Organizations both help prevent small errors from snowballing into catastrophes and create an atmosphere that is open to learning from "near misses."

2. Creativity:

Reluctance to Simplify (Pharmacy Times)

"Understand the complexity of your organization and of patient's unique histories. Conduct logic-based root cause analyses to analyze events and don't let your opinion get in the way."

Alternative Solutions (Readiness Rounds)

High Reliability Organizations look for alternate solutions to problems rather than taking the easiest or most traditional approach.

3. Constant Evaluation:

Sensitivity to Operations (Pharmacy Times)

"Make your best effort to understand the reasoning behind policies and protocols. Consider how procedures are affecting outcomes on a larger scale" Understanding standard proactive can also allow you to become more aware of areas that could be improved."

Constant Revising and Improvement (Readiness Rounds)

Have a willingness to treat the running of the organization as a fluid system that is constantly being reconsidered and revised to improve patient safety and outcomes.

4. Opportunities:

Commitment to Resilience (Pharmacy Times)

"Try to consider mistakes as opportunities for improvement."

Transparency (Readiness Rounds)

Rather than attempting to put the best face on things, High Reliability Organizations make sure that employees at all levels are aware of what is working and what needs improvement.

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5. Empowerment:

Deference to Expertise (Pharmacy Times)

"It is better to be honest [about your own strengths and weaknesses] than provide an incorrect guess."

Participation at All Levels (Readiness Rounds)

High Reliability Organizations encourage employees at all levels to participate in the process.

There is one very important characteristic of a High Reliability Organization the Pharmacy Times article left out:

6. Utilizing Data and Metrics:

High Reliability Organizations monitor and measure performance on several different levels, such as patient outcome, patient satisfaction, and staff morale. By keeping accurate records and generating detailed metrics, these organizations have better data on which to base decisions and with which to investigate potential process improvements.

Robust data collection and reporting is how Readiness Rounds supports its clients in their pursuit in high reliability. Learn about how Readiness Rounds’ solutions are designed to provide important performance improvement support to aid in the pursuit of 5-stars and zero harm.

Empathy = Competence? In the Hospital Setting

The following is an excerpt from a recent Scientific American article, written by Gordon Kraft-Todd on July 13, 2017:

"Is there a warmth/competence trade-off in people’s perceptions of doctors displaying empathic nonverbal behavior? This problem might sound like academic musing but it has major real-world impact. First and foremost, physician empathy (typically perceived as warmth) is associated with positive health outcomes, increased diagnostic accuracy and more patient adherence to treatment."

"Also, physician empathy is associated with increased patient satisfaction. Training doctors to be more empathic may thus benefit the “public good” in that we would all be slightly happier. But it benefits the private good, too. Health care reimbursement is increasingly tied to patient satisfaction surveys, and so it is in the economic self-interest of hospitals to ensure that their patients are satisfied. Ensuring their doctors are empathic can help them get there.

Can you relate? Hospital Staff & Exhaustion

Comic reads:

EMS: "Another case of total exhaustion, Doc!"

Doctor: "We need help here... NURSE!!"

Woman lying face down on the gurney: ..."I am a nurse."

From The Berkshire Eagle, Pittsfield, MA, July 23, 2017

Principles of High Reliability Organizations