Delays in Treatment
Gathering complete patient information to avoid delays
Q: Why is it so important to conduct timely assessments and reassessments?
A: Assessments and reassessments are necessary to furnish information on which to base care decisions that will best meet the patient's needs. The delay in performing assessments and reassessments delays treatment and can possibly contribute to adverse outcomes.
Q: Besides timely assessments, how can staff help avoid treatment delays?
A:
- Establishing medical record retrieval systems that allow off-shift and holiday staff to access information in an efficient and timely manner
- Including ambulatory and emergency information in medical record retrieval systems
- Storing relevant patient information in one location for easy access
- Ensuring that medical records are completed in a timely way
- Coordinating care among all health care professionals and settings involved in a patient's care
Treatment delays account for 286 of the 3,811 sentinel events reported to The Joint Commission as of the end of June 2006, according to the Joint Commission's Sentinel Event Statistics. Inadequate assessment, untimely transmittal of information, and lack of coordination of care are just some of the root causes leading to treatment delays.
When a patient is admitted, caregivers need to quickly access and assemble all relevant information from the patient's record. Staff must identify when this does not occur and track instances when access to documentation is delayed and why. A medical records system must allow for confidential communication and the ability to access information when the main system breaks down. Lack of access to key information can result in an incomplete assessment.
Problems can occur when staff members do not perform appropriate assessments or reassessments. Assessments and reassessments are necessary to furnish information on which to base care decisions that will best meet the patient's needs. The delay in performing assessments and reassessments delays treatment and can possibly contribute to adverse outcomes.
It is also important to report critical test results in a timely manner. National Patient Safety Goal 2C states that organizations must measure, assess and, if appropriate, take action to improve the timeliness of reporting, and the timeliness of receipt by the responsible licensed caregiver-of critical test results and values.
Staff can reduce the likelihood of treatment delays by doing the following:
- Ensuring complete, accurate, and timely assessment and reassessment of patients with accompanying documentation
- Establishing medical record retrieval systems that allow efficient and timely access to information
- Including all patient information in medical record retrieval systems
- Storing relevant patient information in one location for easy access
- Ensuring that medical records are completed in a timely manner
- Coordinating care among all health care professionals and settings involved in a patient's care