Patient Safety Academy Brings 115 Health Professionals to Muskie
Academy participants engage in workshop sessions on patient safety
On Monday, August 1, 115 health professionals gathered at the Muskie School of Public Service for the 2011 Patient Safety Academy, hosted by the Maine Critical Access Hospital Patient Safety Collaborative and supported by the Maine CDC Office of Rural Health and Primary Care. The day-long event included two presentations and a variety of workshop sessions offered by innovators and experts within the field.
In all, 27 hospitals from both urban and rural systems throughout the state were represented. Participants included professionals from long-term care facilities, EMS, ambulatory care, primary care, state agencies, provider organizations, researchers, students, academics, and consumers.
Roger Swartz addresses positive deviance at the 2011 Patient Safety Academy
David Browning, co-director of the Patient Safety and Quality Initiatives at the Institute for Professionalism and Ethical Practice and author of Talking with Patients and Families About Medical Error, kicked off the day with “Disclosure and Apology with Patients and Families: What’s at Stake.” Later in the afternoon, Roger Conrad Swartz, executive director of the Positive Deviance Initiative at Tufts University, challenged the audience to think outside of the box with “Positive Deviance: Innovation from the Inside Out.”
Ralph Gabarro and Lynne Gagno of Mayo Hospital served as workshop leaders
Workshop leaders included Lynne Gagnon, director of Patient Services, and Ralph Gabarro, CEO, both of Mayo Hospital; Peg Shore, HAI Prevention Coordinator for the state of Maine; Stephen Sears, Maine’s state epidemiologist; Elizabeth Hart, medical director at the Maine Hospice Council; Jennifer Hunt-MacLearn, director of Professional Development & Performance Excellence at Spring Harbor Hospital; and Davis Balestracci of Harmony Consulting, LLC.
Educational materials were provided throughout the day-long event
The Academy is an opportunity to advance the dialogue on patient safety on a broad level. Participants who attend each year bring educational materials, case studies, and best practices back to their own institutions and systems to improve patient safety throughout the state. “We know the only way to increase our level of expertise in the relatively new science of patient safety is to work and learn together,” said Judith Tupper, managing director of Population Health and Health Policy at the Muskie School’s Cutler Institute.
Click here to view additional photos from the 2011 Patient Safety Academy.