Risk Management Safety in the Home Care Environment
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Safety is freedom from danger, risk or injury. Risk management is what we do to keep ourselves safe. We work together as a team to keep our patients and ourselves as employees safe. We work safely and attend safety training classes when offered.
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Agency staff should assess the patient's home for anything that could be a hazard to the patient such as poor lighting, frayed carpets, uneven floors, etc. Since about one-third of patients fall in their homes, be especially alert for hazards that might increase the risk for falls such as:
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A Stairs that are cluttered, ill repaired and have no railings;
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B Poor lighting;
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C Electrical cords that are stretched across areas where the patient walks;
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D Poor fitting shoes; and,
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E Narrow, uneven or cluttered surfaces.
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Another potential hazard in the home care environment is fire and/or a poor response to it by the patient or employee. The first step in avoiding a fire in the home is to assess the environment.Be aware of the hazards such as those related to using medical equipment and oxygen, smoking in bed and having a cluttered environment.Be ready to respond by making sure smoke, detectors work, knowing where the exits are and how to reach one fast and how to reach the fire department.
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All occurrences such as accidents and injuries that result in injury to a patient or Agency staff must be documented on an Incident/ Occurrence Report. Samples of these include but are not limited to:
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A Patient falls while staff is present (attended falls);
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B If a patient falls when an employee is not there, this is an unattended fall and can be put on the progress note. If the physician is contacted and there is a significant change in the patient's condition, then an Incident/ Occurrence Report must be completed.
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C Medication errors;
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D Equipment malfunction;
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E Motor vehicle accidents while on agency business; and,
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F Staff injury while on the job
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Risk Management Quiz
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1. It is not important for me to attend in-services on Safety in the home care environment because I practice these things in my own home.
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a) True
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b) False
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2. Hazards that could lead to falls include frayed carpets, clutter and poor fitting shoes.
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a) True
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b) False
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3. In the event of a fire I should know where the nearest exit is and how to reach the fire department.
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a) True
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b) False
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4. All patient falls should be documented
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a) True
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b) False
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Risk Management Quiz Answer Key
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1. F
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2. T
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3. T
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4. T
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