Perspective: call to action: it is time for academic institutions to appoint a resident quality and patient safety officer.

TitlePerspective: call to action: it is time for academic institutions to appoint a resident quality and patient safety officer.
Publication TypeJournal Article
Year of Publication2011
AuthorsFleischut PM, Evans AS, Nugent WC, Faggiani SL, Kerr GE, Lazar EJ
JournalAcad Med
Volume86
Issue7
Pagination826-8
Date Published2011 Jul
ISSN1938-808X
KeywordsAcademic Medical Centers, Hospitals, Teaching, Humans, Institutional Management Teams, Internship and Residency, Interprofessional Relations, Medical Staff, Hospital, New York City, Organizational Culture, Organizational Innovation, Safety Management
Abstract

In meeting the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME) core competency requirements, teaching hospitals often find it challenging to ensure effective involvement of housestaff in the area of quality and patient safety (QPS). Because housestaff are the frontline providers of care to patients, and medical errors occasionally occur based on their actions, it is essential for health care organizations to engage them in QPS processes.In early 2008 a Housestaff Quality Council (HQC) was established at New York-Presbyterian Hospital, Weill Cornell Medical Center, to improve QPS by engaging housestaff in policy and decision-making processes and to promote greater housestaff participation in QPS initiatives. It was quickly realized that the success of the HQC was highly contingent on alignment with the institution's overall QPS agenda. To this end, the position of resident QPS officer was created to strengthen the relationship between the hospital's strategic goals and the HQC. The authors describe the success of the resident QPS officers at their institution and observe that by appointing and supporting resident QPS officers, hospitals will be better able to meet their quality and safety goals, residency programs will be able to fulfill their required ACGME core competencies, and the overall quality and safety of patient care can be improved. Simultaneously, the creation of this position will help to create a new cadre of physician leaders needed to further the goals of QPS in health care.

DOI10.1097/ACM.0b013e31821da286
Alternate JournalAcad Med
PubMed ID21617508