Materia Medica Malaysiana

‘Time to set up risk management protocols’ : "PETALING JAYA: Healthcare institutions need to establish an action plan in line with health risk management protocols to ensure the safety of patients, staff and visitors, said Health Minister Datuk Chua Jui Meng.
He said the action plan should not only involve the entire organisation, but also be fully backed by the related agencies, such as the police, army, fire and rescue department and voluntary organisations.
“Healthcare institutions should also know how to assess, analyse and contain these risks in order to protect their patients, staff and visitors,” he said in his opening speech at the 11th International Healthcare Show 2003, entitled Risk Management in the Healthcare Industry, here Friday. His speech was read by the Ministry’s Parliamentary Secretary S. Sothinathan.
Chua said risk management meant more than just having a safety programme, it involved a process that identified and controlled all the sources of risks and losses in a facility.
“It deals with all the areas of a facility’s operations, among others compliance with Federal and State requirements, maintenance, personnel and asset protection, fire and injury prevention, emergency preparedness, training and evaluation,” he said.
Chua added: “Healthcare risk management entails putting in place policies, processes and procedures for the prevention of risks and the averting of medical errors and facility failures which may otherwise lead to injuries, deaths and financial losses from insurance claims and lawsuits.”
He said among the risks that needed to be looked into were those related to safety of patients and healthcare staff arising from bad surroundings, poor maintenance or facility failure.
“Cases include patients or staff tripping on slippery floors, equipment failures while in use and power failure. The cases may not be reported unless causing death or severe injury,” he said.

The other aspect of risk was concerning security with the need to provide a safe environment for patients, staff, visitors and equipment, followed by natural disasters which could cause a sudden influx of victims to the facility and would jeopardise the normal operations of the organisation.

While the final risk is the weakness and errors in medical management, such as errors in procedures, mistakes in blood transfusion, diagnosis and treatment.

“Such mistakes could have undesirable or even fatal consequences,” he said.

He hoped that with the setting up of the Patient Safety Council of Malaysia last January, it could advise the Ministry on appropriate measures to be taken to improve the patients’ safety in hospitals.- Bernama