The purpose of this final course assignment is to provide you with an opportunity to develop a patient safety program in order to prevent future adverse events like those that caused the issue high deductable in primary care.
All assignments are expected to follow the Journal of the American Medical Association Manual of Style (JAMA). The updated reference manual can be found here: https://www.jamamanualofstyle.com/Links to an external site.
pretend your professor is the senior leadership at your practice and you are convincing them to implement your comprehensive safety program. Your presentation will be a detailed plan regarding the rationale, operations, and implementation. The presentation should include the following elements:
- A clear outline of the safety program being developed including specific detail about your project/program to prevent the issue you selected.
- A plan for incident reporting and data collection
- Strategies for obtaining buy-in from senior leadership and frontline personnel
- Identification of key personnel who will be involved in the management and operations of your safety program (e.g. safety officer, risk manager, etc)
- Discussion on how to structure and train staff and committee members on the comprehensive safety program and specific project related to the prevention of your selected issue.
- Discussion on how the program will engage medical providers
- Discussion on promoting evidence-based practice in the operation of the safety program
The provision of healthcare services is a crucial component in promoting patient safety and overall welfare. High deductibles may create financial barriers to medical care.1 Patients in primary care facilities may encounter unexpectedly high costs, which reduces adherence to medical visits and delays interventions.
High deductibles are the fixed amount patients must pay from their pocket before their insurance program starts. Such deductibles in healthcare insurance increasingly burden patients with medical conditions. Patients visiting the primary care clinic sometimes need help understanding their insurance policies, which may lead to unexpected charges for diagnostic testing and treatment.2 Therefore, many patients, overwhelmed by high fees, stop following up, endangering their health.
Cost transparency enables patients to make knowledgeable decisions regarding essential treatment. Healthcare use and cost awareness are directly linked because higher deductibles lower healthcare consumption, including tests.3 Due to financial concerns, patients with high deductibles are more likely to miss preventive care, diagnostic tests, and potentially lifesaving medications. Additionally, an insufficient understanding of expenses might result in medical failure to adhere to and hinder healthcare seeking, which may aggravate health conditions and pose significant threats to patient safety.4 Patients who do not know their deductible or meet unexpected hospital fees may delay or skip necessary treatments, resulting in poor health and higher healthcare costs.
Patient safety implies preventing harm and delivering timely, effective care. Without knowing the cost, individuals may forgo treatment, compromising their health.5 High deductibles also delay or degrade healthcare treatments, impacting patient safety. Our primary care clinic verifies insurance and deductible information for each patient to address cost awareness and patient safety. This technique allows healthcare practitioners to have informed discussions with patients about the cost of their treatment and offer alternatives or help.