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New Press Ganey Findings Show Healthcare Safety Scores Fell Amid the PandemicA new analysis by Press Ganey finds that safety performance declined across the entire healthcare industry in 2020. These insights indicate a reversal in harm rates that, prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, had shown improvement. Press Ganey reviewed patient outcome data from its National Database of Nursing Quality Indicators (NDNQI®) submitted by 11,325 units from more than 1,575 U.S. hospitals. The findings showed that COVID-19's stress on the healthcare industry contributed to a worsening of existing safety event rates such as falls, pressure ulcers and central line-associated bloodstream infections (CLABSIs). "Hospitals are in survival mode because of the virus, and this has driven unprecedented levels of burnout, turnover and staffing gaps," said Jeff Doucette, chief nursing officer, Press Ganey. "Our healthcare workers must give their energy and almost singular focus to COVID-19, and the ripple effect has exacerbated safety lapses and drift in hospitals." As a result, safety culture has suffered-and safety events have increased:
"These increases in patient arm validate what we know anecdotally and emphasize the effects of an industry under the immense pressure of battling a sustained crisis," said Dr. Tejal Gandhi, chief safety and transformation officer, Press Ganey. "However, the industry's zero harm goal cannot be put on hold until after the pandemic has passed. These findings underscore the urgent need for a recommitment to high reliability principles and safety culture now." The insights from the NDNQI analysis highlight the importance of proactively detecting and avoiding drift, and creating the safest possible working conditions through several strategies:
Above all, a commitment to industry-wide learning and best practices will reduce avoidable harm and make care safer for patients and clinicians. National programs, such as Press Ganey's Safety 2025 initiative promote the spread of knowledge and evidence-based practice that enables industry-wide improvements. Seventy-five leading health systems have joined Press Ganey's Safety 2025, a national initiative for all healthcare systems to achieve an 80% reduction in patient harm by 2025. To join, or to learn more about Press Ganey's Safety and High Reliability solutions, visit PressGaney.com.
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