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Office of Patient Safety
Activities
Objectives
Programs
For more information contact:

Donald A Kennerly, M.D., Ph.D.
Baylor Health Care System
Vice President of Patient Safety and
Chief Patient Safety Officer
8080 N. Central Expressway, Suite 500
Dallas, TX 75206

Tel: 214-265-3621
Fax: 214-265-3628
Email: DonaldK@baylorhealth.edu

Office of Patient Safety Programs
Improving Professional Communication
The OPS has engaged Dr. Michael Leonard, a nationally-recognized expert in teamwork and communication, to implement standardized communication practices when patients’ conditions deteriorate, and to enhance teamwork between BHCS professionals.

SBAR Communication
Structured language/SBAR is a strategy for clear and focused communication. Using SBAR, health care providers discuss patient care by making a clear statement of the Situation, Background, Assessment, and Recommendations.

Facility-Level Staffing Model to Achieve Excellence in Patient Safety
To accomplish goals related to best care in patient safety, a new group of professionals (e.g., clinical risk manager/patient safety officer) will perform patient safety and risk management functions in each facility.

High Reliability Organization Learning Network
BHCS belongs to the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) High Reliability Organization Learning Network, designed to promote collaboration among leading health systems in safety and quality improvement across the United States.

National Patient Safety Goals
BHCS seeks to achieve the national patient safety goals established by the Joint Commission, the nation's predominant standards-setting and accrediting body in health care.

Community Efforts
The OPS collaborates on community patient safety projects with leaders in the Dallas-Fort Worth Hospital Council and the Dallas County Medical Society.

Systemwide Safety Processes
The OPS will continue to support systemwide processes to measure safety indicators identified by national organizations such as Leapfrog, the Joint Commission International Center for Patient Safety, and the Institute for Healthcare Improvement.

Patient Safety Research

Targeted Injury Detection System
A Targeted Injury Detection System will evaluate ways to measure patient harm from medication errors, pressure injuries, and deep wound infection occurring during hospitalization. The OPS, as a member of the Accelerating Change and Transformation in Organizations and Networks initiative (formerly the Integrated Delivery System Research Network), is developing the Targeted Injury Detection System with Intermountain Health Care and Providence Health System under an AHRQ grant. These new formal measures will be promoted nationally by AHRQ in 2008.

Ambulatory Patient Safety Project
The OPS is testing the ability of an ambulatory patient safety program to improve patient safety culture and reduce adverse events in primary care practices in the HealthTexas Provider Network.