HEALTH

Exploring Verbal and Written Orders Related To Federal, State and Accrediting Standards

Exploring Verbal and Written Orders Related To Federal, State and Accrediting Standards

Introduction

Health care communication facilitates inter-dependence among health care members. It involves sharing ideas and thoughts with physicians, student nurses, nursing peers, patients, families and, other interdisciplinary health care members in a professional manner. Effective health care communication is important in care delivery because it enhances higher outcomes, patient safety, patient compliance to treatment, creates trust, utilization of healthcare, and satisfaction. This paper in connection to the healthcare communication will explore verbal and written orders related to federal, state and accrediting standards (Odom, 2008).

The Joint Commission

The Joint Commission is an accreditation organization which provides accreditation for healthcare organization. The organization has set of standards which a healthcare organization must comply to become eligible for the accreditation. These standards measures and access performances of the health care organization. The standards are especially made to focus on the patient are at hospital and resident, it ensures the highest quality given to the patients. There are comprehensive surveys and performance checks to ensure the quality healthcare. There are several law and legal obligations for obtaining these accreditations (NCQA, 2011).

The Joint Commission has set of standards which a nurse had to follow in order to follow standard practices for caring patients. Davis (2011) identified that an action of nurse can only be harmful if the nurse had violate the verbal orders and physicians order. So here are the important things pertinent to verbal and telephone orders a nurse need to ensure take place via the policies, procedures and practices of the hospital:

First of all according to Joint Commission it is the responsibility of the health care organization to clearly define the policies that constitutes verbal and physicians orders.

The healthcare organization should limit the verbal and telephone orders to only such situations in which it is impossible to obtain the computer entry orders (for instance when provider is unavailable or engaged in performing other work)

Hospitals or healthcare organizations should used CPOE or computerized physicians order entry.

It is recommended by the Joint Commission, that orders should be faxed undersigned by the authority, if provider is not available.

Healthcare facility should nominate a person who can give orders

Healthcare facilities should also nominate a person (must be qualified) to receive the verbal orders or take nursing notes (Illinois State Board of Education, 2010).

It is important for the healthcare facility and the receiver of the message to cross check the identity of the provider

Healthcare facilities should not permit telephone or verbal orders for medications involving high risk like chemotherapy agents of cancer.

Healthcare facilities should read back the verbal or telephonic orders to ensure the avoidance of error (McWay, 1996).

Healthcare facilities should ensure the order does not include any of the “do not use” abbreviations

Healthcare facilities should direct their staff for inclusion of the indications of medicines or drugs to avoid the delivery of drugs inappropriate for the patients (Illinois State Board of Education, ...