Easily avoidable infractions for every practice
With this recurring column, Elite Healthcare provides readers with insight related to the legal implications of healthcare – offering practical guidance on scenarios that should be avoidable and providing suggested courses of action when appropriate. The examples provided here are those that all providers should be aware of, but many aren’t or are negligent despite their awareness. Don’t let your practice be compromised.
Fair Warning: The following list of to-do confirmations is going to seem drastically obvious. But be advised that what follows is a set of examples that go overlooked more than they should – which is to say that these infractions should never occur. That said, take a few minutes, if you have not already, to insure that your practice does not have any expired medication samples in your inventory; does promote to all employees polices on the safe disposal of syringes; does have a valid inspection date on all required fire extinguishers; does consult the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention for protocol on disaster preparedness safety; does distribute to all employees the names and contact information for all medical staff, including emergency on-call providers; does provide basic orientation that educates new staff members on all policies and procedures; does schedule annual competency training for all staff members; does ensure ample availability of hand-hygiene products such as soap, clean towels, and alcohol-based hand rubs; does ensure that any electronic health record software is secure through password protection/employee-specific sign-in credentials; and does undergo inspections for various health hazards such as mold and radon.
