Patient Responsibility In Patient Safety

By Maryellen Lamb


The welfare of the sick person is important to both himself and the staff involved with treating him. The individual needs to be aware of a lot of things if he is to play a vital role in his patient safety. If he understands the issues surrounding the kind of treatment he is supposed to get, he can greatly minimize the chances of receiving less than quality care.

The sick person usually also has concerns that he can raise. He needs to be well informed by the staff of any approach that is taken towards his treatment. In this way, he can also point out when there is a mistake that is about to be made. This also corresponds to the need of ensuring that he gives the right information about his medical history. Allergies, for example have to be well explained to the doctors and other staff.

When you suffer from a given kind of illness, you need to be acquainted with knowledge concerning it. If you should become truly knowledgeable about the way you need to be handled, it would mean that you are able to correct the nurse or therapist when she is just about to make a terrible mistake.

When you choose w qualified professional, it is highly unlikely that you will suffer the effects of incompetent care. The reverse is true for those who engage doctors with little experience. Hence, when you have a given condition that requires medical attention, it is very crucial to choose only those who have the best knowledge in handling you.

Getting more than one opinion when you have a given medical condition is also an issue hard to ignore. If you are having issues about the approach your doctor is taking, it does no harm to look for the expertise of a different professional. When you do this, you might be able to detect the area of weakness in the approach each of them takes.

The facility in which you get treated needs to have all the equipment necessary in the kind of treatment you are to receive. When the place is not well equipped, there might be catastrophic results. You will also have it very convenient to be treated in a place where you get all necessities under one roof.

The idea of going to seek treatment together with a trusted person is also very useful. When you are taken for consultations and checkups by one who has an interest in your health, there are situations that he may notice which could have escaped you. In any case, two heads are usually better than one.

Patient safety should not only be left as the responsibility of the doctors or nurses; the patient himself needs to take a proactive role in this issue. This is because he is the one to suffer grave consequences when preventable mistakes do happen. The first step to ensuring this is by having all the right information as may concern the kind of treatment that he is supposes to be given. Avoid relying on the doctor for everything; a little research on your part can save you a lot of pain.




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