Study-Unit Description

Study-Unit Description


CODE HSM5119

 
TITLE Systematic Approaches to Evidence-based Patient Safety and Clinical Risk Management

 
UM LEVEL 05 - Postgraduate Modular Diploma or Degree Course

 
MQF LEVEL 7

 
ECTS CREDITS 5

 
DEPARTMENT Health Systems Management and Leadership

 
DESCRIPTION The complexity of modern day medical practice including the technical and non-technical skills involved as well as the higher risk profile of new, invasive treatment modalities and the increasing levels of hospital-acquired antibiotic resistant infections have necessitated a system-wide approach to the prevention of untoward clinical outcomes. This study-unit will therefore present the students with the concepts of system weaknesses in the causation of:
Medication Errors;
Surgical Errors;
Healthcare-Associated Infections (HAIs);
Diagnostic Errors;
Communication Errors;
Errors related to Human Factors and Ergonomics.

Study-unit Aims:

The aim of this study-unit is to teach students how to adopt a systematic approach to patient safety using recognised tools and frameworks to analyse patient safety risks in the different types and causation of untoward medical outcomes listed above.

Learning Outcomes:

1. Knowledge & Understanding
By the end of the study-unit the student will be able to:

- apply tools and frameworks in a systematic approach to the interpretation of medical incidents;
- identify organisational factors that need to be addressed to prevent a repetition of the same medical incident;
- describe and characterise adverse events from an integrated systems approach;
- analyse medical incidents from a human factors aspect; and
- design a systems-wide approach in drawing up patient safety improvement strategies.

2. Skills
By the end of the study-unit the student will be able to:

- critically analyse a medical incident using a systematic approach framework;
- apply human factors to the interpretation and understanding of adverse events across the medical and administrative causative factor domains of the different types of medical errors;
- formulate error prevention policies and action plans that address systematic failures; and
- support a systematic approach to improve safety culture.

Main Text/s and any supplementary readings:

Main Texts:

- Vincent, C. (2001). Clinical Risk Management. 2nd Edition, BMJ Books, London.
- Vincent, C. (2010). Patient Safety. Wiley Books, London.
- Waterson, P. (Ed.). (2018). Patient safety culture: theory, methods and application. CRC Press.

Supplementary Readings:

- Vincent, C. Amalberti, R. (2016). Safer Healthcare: Strategies for the Real World. Springerlink Openaccess.
- Mid-Staffordshire NHS Foundation Trust Public Inquiry (2013). HM Stationery Office, London.
- Wachter, RM. (2013). Personal accountability in healthcare: searching for the right balance.
- BMJ Quality & Safety, 2013, Feb: 22; 176-180.
- Reason, J. (2000). Human error: Models and Management. BMJ, 2000, 320:768.
- Weaver SJ, Dy SM, Rosen MA . Team training in healthcare:a narrative synthesis of the literature. BMJ Quality & Safety 2014; 23:359-372.

 
STUDY-UNIT TYPE Lecture, Ind Study, Group Learning and Tutorials

 
METHOD OF ASSESSMENT
Assessment Component/s Sept. Asst Session Weighting
Analysis Task (2 Hours) Yes 50%
Long Essay Yes 50%

 
LECTURER/S Sandra Buttigieg
Vincent Cassar
Ingrid Magro
Emanuel Said
Patricia Vella Bonanno (Co-ord.)
Corinne Ward

 

 
The University makes every effort to ensure that the published Courses Plans, Programmes of Study and Study-Unit information are complete and up-to-date at the time of publication. The University reserves the right to make changes in case errors are detected after publication.
The availability of optional units may be subject to timetabling constraints.
Units not attracting a sufficient number of registrations may be withdrawn without notice.
It should be noted that all the information in the description above applies to study-units available during the academic year 2023/4. It may be subject to change in subsequent years.

https://www.um.edu.mt/course/studyunit