WEEK 8 journal 6500 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

WEEK 8 journal 6500 - Essay Example n for errors to occur during practice, but failure to report these errors could lead a habit that may end up causing serious problems in the future especially when patient safety is concerned. When the nursing students were checking blood sugars, the nurse on the hall wanted them to dry their finger that had been wiped with alcohol by fanning it finger using their hand. According to patient safety, procedure in preventing that would be a wrong technique. The finger should air-dry. The nursing students did it the way the nurse wanted them to even though it was wrong so as not to upset the nurse on the hall. Nursing students need to understand that patient safety comes first, and it is okay to report an error or raise concern if they notice an error being committed by a senior nurse or physician. Having an error-reporting system is one important strategy for improving the healthcare system. Apart from offering safety through reporting and tracing underlying causes, it further offers information about potential future errors and problems (Kim, Kim, Kim, & Kim, 2007). According to Wolf & Hughes, (2008) â€Å"ethical principles of beneficence (doing well) and non-maleficence (preventing harm) are violated when errors are not reported or disclosed†. The situation I observed at the practicum site mirrors what research has found to be key reasons that lead to medication administration errors, which is a real world problem. A study carried out to identify barriers to the reporting of medication errors found â€Å"Administrative barriers and fear were found to be the top two reasons for not reporting medication administration errors among nursing students† (Koohestani & Nayereh, 2010). Kim, M.-S., Kim, J. S., Kim, Y. H., & Kim, H. J. (2007). The effectiveness of the error reporting promoting program on the nursing error incidence rate in Korean operating rooms. Journal of Korean Academy of Nursing, 185-191. Wolf, Z. R., & Hughes, R. G. (2008). Chapter 35. Error Reporting