Creating a Culture of Safety

Garden City Hospital is committed to the safety of our patients, families, employees, and volunteers. We promote a culture of safety that encourages and supports free and open communication and non-punitive reporting of any situation or circumstance that threatens or potentially threatens the safety of our patients or caregivers.

The following systems help Garden City Hospital maintain the highest level of safety:

• Reporting Errors, Events, and Near Misses
  Employees are encouraged to document errors, events, and near misses on a confidential report. These reports are reviewed and actions are taken.
• Annual Culture of Safety Survey
  Each year, our staff completes a Culture of Safety Survey, which helps Garden City Hospital identify areas of safety concerns and opportunities for improvement. Results are analyzed and acted upon.
• Patient Safety Rounds
  Patient safety rounds are conducted every week through all nursing units and hospital departments. This is an opportunity for front line staff to connect with patients regar concerns regarding concerns and identify any patient, employee or visitor safety issues, or other potential issues. Identified issues are tracked and forwarded to appropriate Vice Presidents, Directors and Managers for resolution.

Culture of Safety Elements

Garden City Hospital has policies and procedures in place to promote and maintain a culture of safety. They include:

• All patient safety events that should be reported are prioritized.
• A non-punitive “close call” reporting system has been implemented.
• Patient safety events are analyzed.
• There is remedial action as necessary and the effectiveness of the action is measured.
• Leadership is kept knowledgeable about patient safety issues present within the organization and continuously involved in processes to assure that the issues are appropriately addressed and that patient safety is improved.
• There is oversight and coordination of patient safety activities.
• Feedback is provided to frontline healthcare providers about lessons learned.
• Staff is trained in techniques of teamwork-based problem solving and management.

Culture of Safety Activities

There are multiple committees and activities, which include many departments and disciplines, to support constant improvement in the culture of safety at Garden City Hospital.