The authors of this book set out a system of safety strategies and interventions for managing patient safety on a day-to-day basis and improving safety over the long term. These strategies are applicable at all levels of the healthcare system from the frontline to the regulation and governance of the system. There have been many advances in patient safety, but we now need a new and broader vision that encompasses care throughout the patient’s journey. The authors argue that we need to see safety through the patient’s eyes, to consider how safety is managed in different contexts and to develop a wider strategic and practical vision in which patient safety is recast as the management of risk over time. Most safety improvement strategies aim to improve reliability and move closer toward optimal care. However, healthcare will always be under pressure and we also require ways of managing safety when conditions are difficult. We need to make more use of strategies concerned with detecting, controlling, managing and responding to risk. Strategies for managing safety in highly standardised and controlled environments are necessarily different from those in which clinicians constantly have to adapt and respond to changing circumstances. This work is supported by the Health Foundation. The Health Foundation is an independent charity committed to bringing about better health and health care for people in the UK. The charity’s aim is a healthier population in the UK, supported by high quality health care that can be equitably accessed. The Foundation carries out policy analysis and makes grants to front-line teams to try ideas in practice and supports research into what works to make people’s lives healthier and improve the health care system, with a particular emphasis on how to make successful change happen. A key part of the work is to make links between the knowledge of those working to deliver health and health care with research evidence and analysis. The aspiration is to create a virtuous circle, using what works on the ground to inform effective policymaking and vice versa. Good health and health care are vital for a flourishing society. Through sharing what is known, collaboration and building people’s skills and knowledge, the Foundation aims to make a difference and contribute to a healthier population.

Consult Residential Design for Aging In Place, the key reference for designing homes for aging people, if you seek to understand how to create effective spaces for the elderly. Interior designers, architects, and homebuilders are increasingly asked by clients to design homes to allow for adaptation over time, and this is the definitive guide, endorsed by the American Society of Interior Designers (ASID). Find case study examples of good design solutions for designing for aging in place from two authors who are highly respected fellows of the ASID.

"Nurses play a vital role in improving the safety and quality of patient car -- not only in the hospital or ambulatory treatment facility, but also of community-based care and the care performed by family members. Nurses need know what proven techniques and interventions they can use to enhance patient outcomes. To address this need, the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ), with additional funding from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, has prepared this comprehensive, 1,400-page, handbook for nurses on patient safety and quality -- Patient Safety and Quality: An Evidence-Based Handbook for Nurses. (AHRQ Publication No. 08-0043)." - online AHRQ blurb, http://www.ahrq.gov/qual/nurseshdbk/

Home Health Care: Senior Safety in the Home is an Action Item Notebook with Room-by-Room Checklist and Simple Modification Ideas. The notebook with checklists helps guide the evaluation of a seniors home, including starting the process of obtaining senior safety products, and senior safety devices such as grab bars, and other senior safety aids. This notebook contains checklists to help make basic improvements which are often no, or low cost improvements to help increase safety. If you are considering an of the following devices for your senior, this notebook will be a good companion to ensure you are methodical in your approach to making the home more safe (safety rails, grab bars, support cane, low vision aids, medical alert device, pill box containers, medication organizer, non-skid slippers, grabber reach tool, magnification device, magnifying glass, etc.) This is an ideal companion for home health aide workers, nurses, occupational therapists, low vision therapists, physical therapists, family members and friends of seniors.

Family caregiving affects millions of Americans every day, in all walks of life. At least 17.7 million individuals in the United States are caregivers of an older adult with a health or functional limitation. The nation's family caregivers provide the lion's share of long-term care for our older adult population. They are also central to older adults' access to and receipt of health care and community-based social services. Yet the need to recognize and support caregivers is among the least appreciated challenges facing the aging U.S. population. Families Caring for an Aging America examines the prevalence and nature of family caregiving of older adults and the available evidence on the effectiveness of programs, supports, and other interventions designed to support family caregivers. This report also assesses and recommends policies to address the needs of family caregivers and to minimize the barriers that they encounter in trying to meet the needs of older adults.

Ensure that no condition or symptom is overlooked and documentation is as accurate as possible with Home Health Assessment Criteria: 75 Checklists for Skilled Nursing Documentation.