Open | Taranaki DHB promotes 'Let’s Talk' message

Good communication between patients, whānau and Taranaki DHB staff is the focus of this year’s Patient Safety Week, a national campaign which runs from 30 October to 5 November.

Taranaki DHB CEO, Rosemary Clements said "Taranaki DHB takes patient safety seriously and values the importance of communicating well with patients and their whānau. Our health care services strive to provide the best and safest care possible, every time."

"Patient Safety Week is also a time to thank our staff for keeping our patients safe and also acknowledge and thank consumers who are working with Taranaki DHB on boards, committees and projects for service improvements. Together, we can help make patients’ time in hospital as safe as possible."

The theme for this year’s campaign is carried on from 2015 – ‘Let’s Talk,’ with several areas in the spotlight.

These include falls prevention, encouraging discussion with patients and whānau around their health care and advance care planning, checking patients understand their treatment and what happens when they are discharged or transferred to another care setting.

Taranaki DHB Service Improvement Advisor, Mary Bird said, "Patients have a role to play in Patient Safety Week and a range of resources have been produced to support the Let’s Talk theme. We want patients to be involved in their care, to ask questions, to be fully informed and to be given options."

"We will be using Patient Safety Week to promote to staff, patients and whānau how to communicate effectively in a health care setting."

All patients admitted to Base Hospital have been provided with an ‘airline style’ safety card, which gives advice on ways to stay safe in hospital. This includes exercising to prevent blood clots and talking to doctors, nurses and pharmacists about any concerns or questions they may have about new or existing medication they have been prescribed.

Throughout the week there will be displays and activities at Taranaki Base and Hawera Hospitals, as well as a number of community health providers and aged care facilities. These include Patient Safety Week information displays, a falls prevention display, patient safety videos, an Instagram selfie competition, a Spot the Difference Competition, a pop up tea ‘shop’, and speech bubbles with messages from staff about patient safety.

Patient Safety Week is being held nationally and is coordinated by the Health Quality Safety Commission.