National Patient Safety Awareness Week (PSAW)

National Patient Safety Awareness Week (PSAW) – March 8-14, 2020

Written by: Acadia Barnes-Conrad on March 8, 2020 @ 2:49 pm

Today kicks off Patient Safety Awareness Week. #PSAW2020

Patient Safety Awareness Week serves as a dedicated time and platform for growing awareness about patient safety and recognizing the work already being done.
http://www.ihi.org/Engage/Initiatives/Patient-Safety-Awareness-Week/Pages/default.aspx

Patient safety is a top priority; now, more than ever.

“Protect yourself and your community from getting and spreading…illnesses like coronavirus disease 2019. Everyone has a role to play in getting ready and staying healthy.” [https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/community/index.html]

OSHA warns that:

“Exposure risk may be elevated for some workers who interact with potentially infected travelers from abroad, including those involved in:–
-Healthcare
-Deathcare
-Laboratories
-Airline operations
-Border protection
-Solid waste and wastewater management
-Travel to areas, including parts of China, where the virus is spreading”
https://www.osha.gov/SLTC/covid-19/

The outbreak of Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) serves as a reminder to all of us; especially those in healthcare, to be educated on transmissibility, avid about prevention, cognizant of Healthcare Infection Control and the importance of proper handwashing.

For more information about how The Center for Disease Control (CDC) “is responding to the novel coronavirus outbreak” and you can read about it here: https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/index.html

Take the Pledge for Patient Safety by participating in PSAW initiatives this week and every day.