P11: Preventing Medical Errors
Course Overview
CE Hours
3 CE Credits
Course Description
Preventing Medical Errors examines the scope, causes, and prevention of medical errors in health care settings. This course covers the epidemiology of medical errors and their financial and human costs, the types of errors including medication, surgical, diagnostic, and system errors, the evidence showing that most medical errors are systems-related rather than the result of individual negligence, and the National Quality Forum’s 30 safe practices for reducing adverse events. Learners will develop the ability to apply measures to prevent medical errors and describe safe practices that reduce their occurrence across clinical settings.
Course Learning Objectives
At the end of this course, learners will be able to:
- Describe the scope of the medical error problem in the United States including mortality rates, financial costs, and public awareness
- Identify the types of medical errors including medication errors, surgical errors, diagnostic inaccuracies, and system failures
- Explain why most medical errors are systems-related and describe how system improvements can reduce error rates
- Describe the five categories of safe practices for reducing adverse events — creating a culture of safety, matching needs with capability, facilitating information transfer, specific clinical practices, and safe medication use
- Apply the 30 National Quality Forum safe practices for better health care in applicable clinical settings
- Identify high-alert drugs and describe safe medication practices including unit-dose dispensing, proper labeling, and workspace standards
- Describe specific clinical safety practices for preventing pressure ulcers, deep vein thrombosis, aspiration, surgical site infections, and medication errors
- Identify key resources for continuous quality control and patient safety improvement
Course Format and Faculty
Course Format:
Online linked resources and lectures available anytime, 24/7. Includes one multiple-choice exam taken at the end of the course. A passing grade of 75% is required. Upon passing, learners may print their certificate immediately.
Course Developers and Instructors:
R. Klimes, PhD, MPH (Johns Hopkins University) is a scholar and author in health-related research, health behaviors, ethics, end-of-life care, and overall wellness. He has written numerous research reports and books and has held academic and leadership roles in higher education and public health internationally.
Course Time:
Approximately 3 hours for online study, test taking, course evaluation feedback, and certificate printing.
