Sr. Patient Safety Leader

General Summary

Evaluate patient safety events and coordinate with hospital leadership, clinical teams, and Risk Management to promote a culture of high reliability and zero harm. Partner with UMMC departments and the Maryland Medicine Comprehensive Insurance Program (MMCIP) to develop and implement risk reduction strategies that enhance patient safety. Lead and guide multidisciplinary teams, including physicians and senior leaders, in executing patient safety initiatives and improvement strategies across UMMC. Serve as mentor and guide for Patient Safety Leaders. Work is performed under limited supervision. Direct report to the Manager, Patient Safety/Patient Safety Officer.

Principal Responsibilities and Tasks

The following statements are intended to describe the general nature and level of work being performed by people assigned to this classification. They are not to be construed as an exhaustive list of all job responsibilities performed.

• Assist in the coordination and implementation of activities in the journey to become a high reliability organization with a focus on zero harm.
• Coordinate with the Manager of Patient Safety/PSO and senior leadership to direct the patient safety program.
• Lead efforts to enhance event reporting and the response to near-miss incidents. Provide project management support for patient safety priorities identified through event reports, adverse events, or data trends.
• Collaborate with and provide guidance to clinical department/service line and operational leadership.
• Review patient records and prepare patient safety event summaries and timelines for informed, collaborative discussion and problem solving.
• Coordinate root cause analysis, including investigations, root cause analysis facilitation, and apparent cause analyses with subsequent follow up action plans in accordance with The Joint Commission and State of Maryland Code of Regulations for sentinel event and adverse event review, reporting and improvement plans. Facilitate action plan development and completion.
• Partner with UMMC leadership to facilitate, prioritize and advance the ongoing focus on a culture of patient safety.
• Assist with developing and revising UMMC policies and procedures, interpreting and ensuring compliance with UMMC policies, quality standards, regulations and codes.
• Assist the Manager of Patient Safety in activities to improve event reporting and response to safety events and near miss events.
• Collaborate with leaders in safety, quality, performance improvement and data management to determine optimal utilization of data to drive improvements in Patient Safety and minimize harm.
• Responsible for communication and education regarding patient safety and risk prevention strategies throughout the hospital and ambulatory setting.
• Develop and implement education for employees and medical staff related to patient safety. Publish regular “Lessons Learned” for care teams as well as Clinical Practice Updates and Safety Flashes.
• Serve as a consultant and resource to unit managers and unit/department clinical representatives and assist clinical and ancillary departments with the development of clinical and/or patient safety indicators, criteria, and process improvements.
• Responsible for reviewing daily event reports and notifying appropriate managers for follow up, as indicated and escalate to leadership as needed.
• Develop reports to identify patterns and trends; track trends and anticipate events to reduce preventable harm.
• Identify nominees for monthly Great Catch awards.
• Identify and investigate patient safety events, opportunities, trends and sentinel events.
• Participate in educational programs including orientation related to patient safety and the prevention of medical errors and compliance with regulatory standards.
• Lead Proactive Risk Assessments/FMEAs (failure modes effects analysis) and common cause analysis as required.
• Conduct chart reviews and interviews for safety event reviews and RCA discussions to investigate patient safety and adverse events.
• Assist with the implementation of the Safety Culture Assessment survey instrument. Assist individual work areas as results become available and collate action plans.
• Serve as a member of hospital committees and teams as requested for the purpose of ensuring that patient safety and the prevention of medical errors are addressed as needed.
• Assist the Patient Safety Manager/Patient Safety Officer with preparing and submitting reports to the State and The Joint Commission.
• Ensure compliance with external regulators and accrediting agencies (e.g., The Joint Commission, CMS, Maryland State Department of Health Office of Healthcare Quality. Ensure that Medical Center and departmental policies, procedures and standards meet requirements and regulations of regulatory and accrediting agencies related to patient safety.
• Serve as a patient safety expert and professional resource for the patient safety program and UMMC staff.
• Educate leaders and clinical staff on creating a fair and just culture that balances a non-punitive approach to human error with appropriate accountability for reckless behavior.
• Participate in system level safety workgroups, initiatives and rounding activities (e.g., PSO, Workplace Violence, Elopement, Falls, etc.).
• Support patient safety projects discovered through event reports, adverse events, or data trends.
• Perform other duties as assigned.