Patient safety a Bay Pines VA top priority

Bay Pines VA is continuously working toward becoming a High Reliability Organization (HRO). One of the fundamental pillars of an HRO is cultivating a culture of safety, and the wellbeing of the Veterans we serve remains at the center of that goal.

Patient safety is about fostering a physical, mental and emotional environment for patients, one that is aimed at optimizing wellness and preventing harm.

“HROs are those that are committed to achieving Zero Harm and patient safety is integral to that journey,” said Bay Pines VA Patient Safety Manager and Assistant Chief of Quality Systems Kathleen Seymer. “The values and practices that are used to prevent harm and learn from our mistakes drive what we do and how we do it while providing a psychologically safe environment for employees to speak up. It is and should be the most important aspect of patient care and service for anyone working in health care. Specific attention should be given to identifying, mitigating and eliminating risks that could result in adverse (harm) or close call (non-harm) events.”

Pictured above from left are Patient Safety Specialists Tracy Byam, Julie Lavelle and Seymer.

Specific attention should be given to eliminating risks

At Bay Pines VA, striving to achieve zero harm means identifying deficiencies and taking steps to fix issues as they arise. The facility leans on the directives, standard operating procedures, handbooks and guidebooks provided by VA and the National Center for Patient Safety to build practices that result in the safe delivery of patient care.

“When a system or process is identified for improvement, the patient safety team will work with stakeholders to determine what actions can and should be taken to correct that system or process. Implementing strong actions which are designed to remove human error as a factor result in the best and most sustainable patient safety systems,” said Seymer.

Patient safety is a team effort and includes a cohort of strong patient safety specialists who complete the important work of establishing and maintaining processes that have widespread impact across Bay Pines VA.

“So rewarding to create environments where Veterans get the safest possible care.”

Kathleen Seymer

Seymer continued: “The patient safety team consistently conducts environment of care rounds, completes assessments on falls, medication errors, wandering and missing patients, and performance improvement efforts and many other things. They also promote the identification of adverse or close call patient safety events through the Joint Patient Safety Reporting system. This identification draws attention to the root causes of safety events so that corrective actions can be taken to reduce or eliminate the recurrence of them occurring in the future.”

With more than 40 years of experience as a registered nurse, Seymer joined VA six years ago. “When I became a patient safety manager with VA, I relished the opportunity. Most health care professionals have either experienced a medical error or know someone who has. It’s so rewarding to be able to do my part to reduce these errors and create health care environments where Veterans trust they are getting the best and safest possible care in the world.”