Keywords

empowerment, healthy workplace, participatory management, patient safety, teamwork, unit-shared leadership, unit-based committees

 

Authors

  1. Clark, Paul R. MSN, MA, RN
  2. Parsons, Mickey L. PhD, MHA, RN, FAAN
  3. Payne, Linda RN
  4. Garcia, Sandy RN
  5. Reimer, Arla RN
  6. Golightly-Jenkins, Clarice PhD, RN

Abstract

The increasing demand and hectic pace of emergency departments across the nation requires the development of safe patient care provision and healthy workplaces. Both of these developments can be achieved when staff is actively engaged in decision making for quality patient care and department operations. This article reviews how teamwork can be used to address both safer patient care provision and healthy workplace creation. A case study follows that describes one emergency department's journey to develop and continuously improve the quality and safety of patient care as the continuing follow-through from full participation in the Parsons Healthy Workplace Intervention. It describes their unit-based committees, their strategies, how they work as a team, and early outcomes to enhance the emergency department's quality and safety of patient care.