Common Errors in Wound Management: TJC Guidelines and Implications for the WOCN

RATIONALE AND PURPOSE:  Depending on the facility, the WOC nurse may have a role in maintaining patient safety and, therefore, must be knowledgeable regarding the guidelines developed by The Joint Commission (TJC).  OBJECTIVE:  To increase knowledge and compliance of TJC guidelines and national patient safety goals in order to decrease harmful practices that adversely affect patient safety.  BACKGROUND:  Based on current data, TJC focuses on prominent or potentially harmful practices that adversely affect patient safety. As TJC addresses new, or uncorrected, patient safety issues, it revises the national patient safety goals.  With each patient safety goal, TJC states the goal, rational, and element of performance.  PROBLEM:  Strenuous schedules, caseloads and job requirements may make it difficult for the WOC nurse to keep staff up-to-date on new information, laws and guidelines.  Yet there are specific TJC Patient Safety Goals for 2009 that have implications for the WOC Nurse. including: improving the accuracy of patient identification; improving the safety of using medication; reducing the risk of health care associated infections as it relates to evidenced based practice; encouraging patient’s active involvement in their own care; and improving recognition and response to changes in patient’s condition related to specialty trained personnel.  SOLUTION: Emphasize the National Patient Safety Goals related to the WOC nurse role as a staff education issue for maintaining patient safety. The poster will have a major emphasis on those TJC Guidelines & National Patient Safety Goals that specifically relate to the WOC nurse and his/her education of staff on maintaining patient safety.  In addition, this presentation will offer information on the ease of interpreting TJC Guidelines, describe infection control priorities/standards and introduce a quick inservice that the WOC nurse may present to all staff, a new mnemonic for safe wound management.