Client and patient safety
From the client’s and patient’s perspective, safety means that they receive the correct care and service they need at the right time, and that the care or service doesn’t cause any harm. Social welfare and health care are complex and demanding. Sometimes things do not go the way one might have hoped.
Soite has a very competent and skilled staff. Our goal is that our patients and clients receive good and safe care. The reasons for different adverse events are often beyond the employee’s control, such as system disruptions or interruptions to work tasks.
What can you personally do to improve patient safety?
Event though health and social care staff are responsible for the safety in care and services, patients and their loved ones also play a key role in promoting patient safety. It is important that patients themselves provide the necessary background information, describe their symptoms, wishes and concerns, and ask questions about matters related to their care.
Identification is the foundation of safe treatment, care and services, and an essential part of client and patient safety. Identification means verifying your identity. By identifying the client/patient, we ensure that you receive the correct treatment, care or service, and that your information is recorded correctly in documents.
Every social welfare and health care employee is responsible for identification. As a client or patient, you also play a part in ensuring your identification. Your identity must always be verified when you seek out Soite services, when you are undergoing an examination or treatment, when you are about to be given medication, or when you are moving from one service to another.
Identification is done several times a day and in different situations. You are responsible, for your own part and according to your abilities, for participating in the identification.
Please note!
Please notify staff if your identity is not verified before you use services, before a blood test is taken or before a procedure or an examination or, for example, before medication is administered.
A checklist for clients and patients:
- Make sure that the staff has the correct information about you and your illness. This will help ensure that care and services can be planned and provided in the best possible way.
- Do not hesitate to ask if you have any questions about your illness, examinations or further care – you have the right to know.
- If your loved one is a patient and is unable to discuss their care themselves, you may, with their consent, provide information and ask questions on their behalf.
- If you or your loved one (who is 18 years old or older) are unable to use Soite services personally because of an illness or for some other reason, please provide a power/letter of attorney to act on behalf of.
- Make sure you receive information about the results of any procedures carried out on you.
- Always tell staff about any prescription and over-the-counter medicines you use.
- Make sure that the doctors and nurses treating you know about your medicine allergies and previous adverse reactions to medication.
- Ask what new medicines have been prescribed for you and why.
- Read the instructions you have received about medication and other treatment.
- Tell the staff if anything about your care makes you uncertain or worried.
- Let staff know if you are pregnant or suspect that you may be pregnant or if you are breastfeeding.
- Notify the staff immediately if you think or suspect that an error has occurred in your care.
- Maintain good hand hygiene. Make sure that your visitors also wash and disinfect their hands in accordance with the instructions.
- Follow the regional face mask recommendation and the unit’s visiting instructions.
Patient safety incident
A patient safety incident is an event that endangers patient safety and which causes, or may cause, harm. A patient safety incident may be near misses where a situation that is dangerous for the client is noticed in time and no harm is caused to the client. An adverse event refers to a situation in which the client suffers harm that is not part of the care.
The patient is at the centre of the care process and is best placed to observe different situations from start to finish. If you notice that a patient safety incident has occurred during your care, you can submit a patient safety incident report. You can submit the report anonymously, but if you would like a response to your report, please include your contact details. Patient safety incident reports are reviewed with the concerned unit and they are acted upon.
If you notice a patient safety incident, you can also raise the matter with the health care staff. This should also be done if the matter needs to be corrected immediately. For example, if you suspect that the medicines you have been given are not correct, inform the health care staff immediately.
Reporting incidents helps us improve our work and practices so that similar incidents can be avoided in the future.
Objections and complaints
Objections, patient injuries and complaints are not included in Soite’s feedback system; instead, the processing of them is initiated by filling out a separate notification form (the form is available in Finnish and in Swedish).