Norton Children’s Hospital enhances safety culture

To strengthen its culture of patient safety and increase staff comfort with reporting safety events and near misses, Norton Children’s Hospital in Louisville, Ky., made safety conversations more accessible, engaging and psychologically safe for front-line nurses. In the July issue of Voice of Nursing Leadership, the authors describe how leaders rounded in the emergency department with a mobile cart, serving a safety-themed mocktail while facilitating short, safety-focused conversations. They built sessions around a safety theme, trend or significant finding within the safety reporting system. Near miss average monthly reporting increased within nine months of implementation, and overall safety reporting increased by 19% the year following implementation. Norton Children’s spread the program to its other departments and facilities.