The 1999 landmark study titled To Err Is Human: Building a Safer Health System highlighted the unacceptably high incidence of U.S. medical errors and put forth recommendations to improve patient safety. Since its publication, the recommendations in NTo Err Is Humann have guided significant changes in nursing practice in the United States.
In this Discussion, you will review these recommendations and consider the role of health information technology in helping address concerns presented in the report.
To prepare:
Consider the following statement:
The most significant barrier to improving patient safety identified in To Err Is Human is a “lack of awareness of the extent to which errors occur daily in all health care settings and organizations (Wakefield, 2008).
Review The Quality Chasm Series: Implications for Nursing focusing on Table 3: Simple Rules for the 21st Century Health Care System. Consider your current organization or one with which you are familiar. Reflect on one of the rules where the current rule is still in operation in the organization and consider another instance in which the organization has effectively transitioned to the new rule.
American Nurses Association. (2015). Nursing informatics: Scope & standards of practice (2nd ed.). Silver Springs, MD: Author.