5 Ways to Keep Behavioral Health Patients Safe, Delayed Breast Cancer Diagnosis, and more...

5 Ways to Keep Behavioral Health Patients Safe and Mitigate Risk

In observance of Mental Health Awareness Month and in a continuous effort to ensure the safe care of behavioral health patients, here are some key considerations as identified by the Emergency Medicine Behavioral Health Task Force, convened by CRICO’s AMC Patient Safety Organization:

Equitable Care: Help foster a culture and environment that ensures that this patient population receives equal attention and resources; work to decrease biases
Physical Environment: Be aware of defined spaces for safe and private evaluation and ongoing treatment
Patient and Staff Safety: Regularly assess and communicate patient risk; know what is needed to maintain the safety of patients, visitors, and staff
Initial Evaluation: Implement standardized processes to identify and assess behavioral health patients and promptly initiate an appropriate plan of care
Medical Assessment: Document all collateral information; use standard documentation language for completion of medical assessments

For more details and recommendations, download Safety in the Emergency Department: Improving the Care of Behavioral Health Patients.

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Resources

The CRICO Insurance Program offers an array of insurance and risk prevention tools and resources to members of our community. We’re here to help create a safer care environment for you and your patients.

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Study Highlights Need for Improvement of Patient Safety in Outpatient Settings

Press Release

Research led by Boston-area health care systems found that 7% of inpatients experienced at least one adverse event and 1.8% of inpatients experienced at least one preventable adverse event.

5 Ways to Keep Behavioral Health Patients Safe, Delayed Breast Cancer Diagnosis, and more...

5 Ways to Keep Behavioral Health Patients Safe and Mitigate Risk

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5 Ways to Keep Behavioral Health Patients Safe, Delayed Breast Cancer Diagnosis, and more...

5 Ways to Keep Behavioral Health Patients Safe and Mitigate Risk

Delayed Breast Cancer Diagnosis after Insufficient Follow-up

Case Study

Podcast

Resources

Study Highlights Need for Improvement of Patient Safety in Outpatient Settings

Press Release

Recent Issues

Outpatient Adverse Events Often Preventable, Delayed Cancer Diagnosis Case Study, and More

Fatal Consequences of Inadequate Triage in the ED, ‘Facing Claims, Feeling Strain,’ and More

Poor Teamwork Contributes to Anesthesiology Errors and Patient Harm, Mitigating Medication Mistakes, and More

Medication Monitoring Missteps Lead to Vision Loss, Data-Driven Priorities in Ambulatory Care, and More

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