Risk Management Program Analysis
Risk management is an intrinsic component of any healthcare organization’s regular business practice. Risk management encompasses of recognizing risks, evaluating risks and coming up with implementations that could help reduce or completely eliminate risk (Cagliano, Grimaldi & Rafele, 2011). This risk management plan is developed for to guide new employees to ensure risk is effectively managed within the healthcare center to reduce or completely eliminate risk while dealing with patients. The rationale why I chose to develop a risk management plan for new employees is that new employees need to be taught about risk management practices within the organization to ensure smooth transition and minimization of risks in future.
Administrative steps and processes
Be as it may risk management program is often administered through the risk manager who is expected to report to the healthcare administrator. It is the duty of the risk manager to work in tandem with the administration, healthcare workers, staff as well as other professionals to ensure that risks are minimized. It is imperative to note that the risk manager has the power to cross operation lines to ensure that the risk management goals are met. It is also the duty of the risk manager to chair all activities concerning patient safety and risk management committee.
The five typical steps of risk management in healthcare include
Establish the context: It is paramount to establish the context of risks in the risk management process. High priority areas for risk management include ICU (Intensive Care Unit), E. R (Emergency Room), O.R (Operation room), CCU (Coronary Care Unit) and blood transfusion services (Cagliano, Grimaldi, & Rafele, 2011). Likewise, it is important for new employees to identify the context based on their assigned duty.
Risk Identification: This process enables healthcare professionals and employees to become aware of the risks prevalent in health care services and the environment. All risks identified must be documented in the Risk Management Tool (RMT). This is a typical process and thus new employees should be able to identify risks win the health care services and the environment.
Analyze risks: This step enables new employees to understand the risk identified. Typically, this process encompasses of understanding the risk score, underlying causes, and existing control measures.
Evaluate risks: The goal of risk evaluation is to prioritize risks depending on risk analysis score. Similarly, it enables the risk management team to make a decision on risks that need treatment and how it can be treated.
Risk treatment/ risk mitigation: The decision concerning risk mitigation should be in tandem with the internal, external and risk management context put in place.
Key Agencies and Organizations that Regulate the Administration of Safe Healthcare
American Society for Healthcare Risk Management (ASHRM)
This body provides guidelines that help healthcare professionals to comply with risk management. ASHRM is made up of members from AHA that represent risk management, issues to deal with patient safety, low, insurance, finance among others.
The Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ)
This organization help in risk management. AHRQ is under HHS (department of Health and Human Services). Their main role is to conduct research with the aim of bettering the quality of healthcare, reduce costs, and address medical errors and the issue of patient safety.
The Joint Commission on Accreditation of Health Care Organization (JCAHO)
This organization is a non-profit organization that operates to make certain that health care organizations offer quality care. This is achieved by examining health care organization and ranking them using scores of 1-100.
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
The CDC is a public health regulation program that examines public health and warns of possible health threats arising from infectious diseases. The agency achieves this by monitoring disabilities, birth defects, conditions, diseases, environmental health, genetics, workplace safety and health.
Other agencies include Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for controlling the safety as well as the effectiveness of drug supply used for the treatment of humans and animals, Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) for protecting the environment as well as human health.
Analysis of New Employee Risk Management Plan
Be as it may, the American Society for Health Care Risk Management encompass of approximately 6,00 members that represent risk management, issues to deal with patient safety, low, insurance, finance among others. Their mission is to “advance patient safety, reduce uncertainty and maximize value through management of risk across the healthcare enterprise” (The American Society for Healthcare Risk Management, 2017). The new employee risk management plan has been tailored to comply with ASHRM standards.
Privacy of new employees in the risk management program is maintained. New employees record risk issues identified in the risk management tool without including their private information such as name and contacts. All documents and records that are part of the risk management program are privileged and confidential as stipulated by the federal law. The confidentiality covers on attorney work product, attorney-client privilege among other peer review protections.
The risk management program has also put in place measures to ensure the safety of the healthcare worker. The program provides the guidelines and safety measures that health care worker should adhere to while in the workplace to ensure their safety. New employees are also trained in risk management and given effective strategies to ensure that they cushion themselves against risk while attending to patients. The environment in which healthcare workers carry out their duties is also inspected to ascertain if it meets Occupation & Health Safety (OHS) standards.
The new employee risk management program is also tailored towards patient safety. Patient safety is enhanced by adequately training health care workers and staff, encouraging good communication among the patient and staff members. The program also provides counseling services to employees that work with patients. On the same note, competency assessment is conducted regularly.
Recommendations
One area of concern in risk management is avoiding potential financial concerns. Therefore, plans designated for risk management should cover patient-specific risks. On the same note, these plans should be well documented and made accessible to all health care workers working with patients. New employees should be trained and provided all the requisite information concerning risks and safety in the workplace. New employees working with patients should also be provided counseling services. Adequate training of staff help reduce the prevalence of risks in healthcare organizations.
The plan should also encourage strong communication among staff members and patients. Good communication between different stakeholders enable the risk manager to identify potential risk as the health care workers are able to communicate freely and note some of the risks they encounter while in the workplace.
References
Cagliano, A. C., Grimaldi, S., & Rafele, C. (2011). A systemic methodology for risk management in healthcare sector. Safety Science, 49(5), 695-708.
The American Society for Healthcare Risk Management. (2017). About ASHRM – The American Society for Healthcare Risk Management. Ashrm.org. Retrieved 25 February 2017, from http://www.ashrm.org/about/index.dhtml
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