A 6,500-participant study found 58% of nurses who had encountered a patient safety warning did not report the problem. With regard to events that almost or actually harmed patients, only 17% of nurses who had seen a dangerous shortcut and 11% of those who had encountered an incompetent colleague reported the case, according to the study. The researchers said the culture of silence is many hospitals can undermine the effectiveness of medical error prevention efforts. U.S. News & World Report/HealthDay News (3/22)
A symptom of this is the way many new and returning nurses are being pushed out into the profession...So many advertisements today show how fast you can become a nurse or increase your education in less time...Where does the experience come in, the chance to even get the baseline gut feelings most older nurses have that SAVES lives..Too many nurses today do a lot of things because someone else told them that's the way to do it, with very little explanation for why it needs to be done and the theory behind it....
I always train new nurses to NEVER do anything without KNOWING WHY they are doing it...And Always Ask!!!
Another symptom of this problem is that many older nurses are still in the mindset, that it is better to deal with situations internally and are still afraid of the disciplinary process...Yes many facilities have tried to make it kinder and friendlier but too many nurses burned in the past will hardly trust the new system and newer nurses still see the process as accusatory and unsupported to making real changer to make practice safe...
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