The stakes are lofty in the world of healthcare. A minute difference in precision and accuracy can dictate life and death. The healthcare front liners carry such heavy responsibilities daily. In such vivid levels of detail and precision, we cannot overstate the criticality of checklists. In healthcare management, checklists are crucial to guarantee patient safety and enhance outcomes. Checklists give a systematic approach to patient care, promoting consistency, improving coordination and accountability, and fostering a safe and responsible culture. Digital transformation revolutionizes this approach, especially with software or applications in healthcare management.
Automated checklists, digitized ones that healthcare front-liners can assess through intelligent apps on computers, tablets, or smartphones, are transforming healthcare management. Read on to learn how to improve patient safety and health outcomes with digital checklists in hospitals and healthcare organizations.
Checklists – that enhance patient safety
Healthcare is one of the most high-risk sector, where a minute error or oversight can cause severe consequences on the patient safety. Checklists in healthcare ensure that all the critical tasks are done in a uniform and standardized manner. Hospitals use checklists extensively for a variety of healthcare processes to have a standard process and for enhanced patient safety.
Administering medications: Checklists guarantee that front-line medical staff members give medications according to the prescribed dosage and method.
Controlling infections: If inadequate infection-control procedures are followed, hospitals may also turn into a hub for transmission of infections. So, it is important to follow infection-controlling processes and adhere to these practices. It can be as simple as good hand hygiene or wearing personal protective equipment. These checklists ensure that healthcare professionals and hospitals stick with these practices.
Patient identification: These checklists confirm the right identification of patients before procedures. This is crucial in mitigating errors such as administering the wrong medications to the wrong patient.
Preventing patients from getting hospital acquired conditions: A study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) states that by simply implementing a daily checklist for ICU patients lowered the mortality rates significantly. The study had 118 ICUs participating across the United States. It observed that by using a daily checklist that reminds clinicians to perform specific tasks – such as raising the head of the bed to prevent ventilator-associated pneumonia- reduced the mortality by 22%. The research highlights how checklists help in ticking off small details which can actually work towards enhancing healthcare outcomes.
Surgical procedures: Checklists made for surgical procedures make sure that each and every necessary step that should be taken before, during, and after surgery is taken care of. These checklists minimize the chances of errors, lower the chance of adverse events, and reduce post-surgery complications.
A study published in the New England Journal of Medicine establishes this point as it shows 47% decrease in death rate and post-surgery complications by using checklists for surgery. The study was conducted in eight cities around the world. It concluded the action of using a simple checklist before the surgical procedure markedly reduced surgical complications and improved patient safety.
Diagnostic tests: Checklists for diagnostic tests make sure that the mandatory steps that are needed to perform before, during and after the tests are well taken care of. This reduces the risks of errors and increase the accuracy of the test results.
Patient admission and discharge: Checklists for patient admission and discharge guarantee that all the required patient information is present, whether for admission or for discharging the patient. Having insufficient or improper information can lead to assumptions, errors and even complications. These checklists also help in improving communication among the healthcare providers.
Critical care procedures: Critical care procedure checklists guarantee that the healthcare teams follow all the vital processes during critical care procedures- such as intubation and ventilation. This further mitigates the risk of errors and enhances patient safety.
Equipment maintenance: In hospitals, an equipment maintenance checklist is crucial for guaranteeing that the equipment functions optimally and that there are no equipment-related incidents.
What happens with digital checklists in healthcare management?
Hospitals can seamlessly streamline their operations with a digital healthcare task management solution. A solution such as the Proceso App is a no-code software with inbuilt digital checklists replete with notifications and alerts, leaving no space for errors. From checklists for frontline workers to checklists for supervisors and managers, such as shift handover checklists, quality assurance audits, staff training, and certifications checklists to checklists for auditors and compliance officers, it unifies the entire healthcare management on a single enterprise application. Digitization indicates that the workforce becomes connected and the processes more transparent and accountable than before.
Benefits of automated checklists in healthcare
Healthcare organizations can have a strong foundation of improved efficiencies by streamlining operations with digital checklists. With automated checklists in healthcare, organizations can realize the following benefits:
Standardized procedures
Digital checklists ensure that the procedures are standardized. There is no space for discrepancies or pencil whipping, but there is an enhanced effect of transparency and accountability, as digitization ensures matters get escalated when not done correctly.
Better standardization results in a reduction in variability in care and boosts the reliability of care. The healthcare outcomes become better, and patient safety is enhanced.
Improved communication and collaboration
Digital and automated checklists facilitate seamless and faster team communication and collaboration. Healthcare providers receive a clear, consistent, and non-ambiguous framework for their tasks and are well-connected to each other via the solution.
Reduction of errors
The automated checklists are a step forward in the right direction, with timely
prompts and reminders to healthcare providers. The timely prompts help prevent errors and negligence, such as incorrect dosage administration, skipped diagnostic tests, and several other preventable errors that can lead to detrimental effects.
Cost savings
A study made by the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) shows that hospitals incur an additional cost of $16,000 and additional 19.5 days hospital stay due to adverse events that happen in hospitals.
Digital checklists can help averse this situation to a great extent. Healthcare organizations can avert the costs incurred due to errors, adverse events, and the need for expensive interventions and re-treatments. Automated checklists prioritize patient safety and prevent errors with their real-time functionality.
Compliance
The digital checklists guarantee accurate and timely compliance. As a result, they prevent escalations, delays, and further follow-ups, resulting in cost efficiency and better patient outcomes.
Data collection and analytics
With AI-driven solutions such as the Proceso App, the digital checklists also gather and harness valuable data that the organization can leverage to detect operational bottlenecks, improve healthcare processes, and enhance patient outcomes. The app also tracks compliance with checklists. With that, the hospitals can pinpoint areas for improvement and carry out targeted interventions to address the gaps in care.
Increased efficiency
Digital checklists boost efficiency in healthcare by reducing the time and effort required to execute routine tasks. As a result, healthcare providers can focus better on more complex and critical tasks, which in turn leads to better patient care and outcomes.
Proceso App – for improving patient safety
We go to hospitals to get treated and become better. But again, in a hospital, we are vulnerable and exposed to a wide variety of complications. A WHO report states that one in ten patients usually experience negligence or harm while they receive healthcare. It is a shocking revelation indeed! More than 50% of such incidents are preventable. Having checklists, especially automated digital checklists, is the key to preventing such occurrences. The checklists proactively ensure patient safety at every juncture and ensure a hassle-free and risk-free experience.
Proceso App for healthcare is a comprehensive and connected AI-powered task management solution that streamlines healthcare tasks for your organization. With digital checklists, notifications and alerts, real-time compliance, surveys, and feedback, the Proceso app handles patient care efficiently, eliminating the risks that happen with manual efforts while delivering exceptional patient and customer experiences.
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