title: Reduction of adverse drug events and medication errors in a community hospital setting.
abstract: Keys to success in reducing ADEs have included the support of administrative leaders through their visibility and emphasis on safety as an organizational priority, and financial support for safety projects. Administrative participation was also helpful in promoting safety efforts through the reinforcement of expectations when progress was sluggish. The use of rapid cycle change provided enough early success to serve in motivating staff to push ahead. It allowed staff the opportunity to analyze changes, make adjustments, and retest on a slightly larger scale. Other key success factors included the motivation of teams through continual sharing of progress and success stories; celebrations for achievements are held routinely. As an organization, SJMC has shared its success strategies with other organizations and promoted networking with other organizations to determine what strategies have worked elsewhere. This is helpful as it prevents time from being wasted on solutions that have been tried without success. Within the OSF Healthcare System, the following phrase has been adopted in regard to patient safety, "Safety is like peeling an onion; the more you look, the more you find, and each layer makes you cry."
authors.affiliation: OSF St. Joseph Medical Center, 2200 E. Washington, Bloomington, IL 61701, USA. debsdarb@msn.com
authors.forename: Deborah S
authors.initials: DS
authors.lastname: Smith
authors.forename: Kathy
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Haig
mesh_terms: D016907:Adverse Drug Reaction Reporting Systems / Q000458:organization & administration; D001291:Attitude of Health Personnel; D002985:Clinical Protocols; D003299:Cooperative Behavior; D007722:Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice; D006764:Hospitals, Community / Q000458:organization & administration*; D016519:Hospitals, Religious / Q000458:organization & administration; D006801:Humans; D007087:Illinois; D016347:Medical Records Systems, Computerized / Q000458:organization & administration; D008508:Medication Errors / Q000517:prevention & control* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D008510:Medication Systems, Hospital / Q000458:organization & administration*; D015279:Organizational Culture; D010564:Personnel, Hospital / Q000193:education / Q000523:psychology; D016730:Program Development; D017751:Safety Management / Q000458:organization & administration*; D013597:Systems Analysis; D017749:Total Quality Management / Q000458:organization & administration