Root-Cause Analysis and Safety Improvement Plan
Assessment 2 Instructions: Root-Cause Analysis and Safety Improvement Plan
For this assessment, you can use a supplied template to conduct a root-cause analysis. The completed
assessment will be a scholarly paper focusing on a quality or safety issue pertaining to medication
administration in a health care setting of your choice as well as a safety improvement plan.
As patient safety concerns continue to be addressed in the health care settings, nurses can play an active role
in implementing safety improvement measures and plans. Often root-cause analyses are conducted and safety
improvement plans are created to address sentinel or adverse events such as medication errors, patient falls,
wrong-site surgery events, and hospital-acquired infections. Performing a root-cause analysis offers a
systematic approach for identifying causes of problems, including process and system-check failures. Once the
causes of failures have been determined, a safety improvement plan can be developed to prevent recurrences.
The baccalaureate nurse’s role as a leader is to create safety improvement plans as well as disseminate vital
information to staff nurses and other health care professionals to protect patients and improve outcomes.
As you prepare for this assessment, it would be an excellent choice to complete the Quality and Safety
Improvement Plan Knowledge Base activity and to review the various assessment resources, all of which will
help you build your knowledge of key concepts and terms related to quality and safety improvement. The
terms and concepts will be helpful as you prepare your Root-Cause Analysis and Safety Improvement Plan.
Activities are not graded and demonstrate course engagement.
Demonstration of Proficiency
By successfully completing this assessment, you will demonstrate your proficiency in the following course
competencies and assessment criteria:
Competency 1: Analyze the elements of a successful quality improvement initiative.
Apply evidence-based and best-practice strategies to address a safety issue or sentinel event
pertaining to medication administration. ;
Create a viable, evidence-based safety improvement plan for safe medication administration.
Competency 2: Analyze factors that lead to patient safety risks.
Analyze the root cause of a patient safety issue or a specific sentinel event pertaining to
medication administration in an organization.
Competency 3: Identify organizational interventions to promote patient safety.
Identify existing organizational resources that could be leveraged to improve a safety
improvement plan for safe medication administration.
Competency 5: Apply professional, scholarly, evidence-based strategies to communicate in a manner
that supports safe and effective patient care.
Communicate in writing that is clear, logical, and professional, with correct grammar and spelling,
using current APA style.
Professional Context
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5/24/23, 4:33 PM Assessment 2 Instructions: Root-Cause Analysis and Safety …
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Nursing practice is governed by health care policies and procedures as well as state and national regulations
developed to prevent problems. It is critical for nurses to participate in gathering and analyzing data to
determine causes of patient safety issues, in solving problems, and in implementing quality improvements.
Scenario
For this assessment, you may choose from the following options as the subject of a root-cause analysis and
safety improvement plan:
The specific safety concern identified in your previous assessment pertaining to medication
administration safety concerns.
The readings, case studies, or a personal experience in which a sentinel event occurred surrounding an
issue or concern with medication administration.
Instructions
The purpose of this assessment is to demonstrate your understanding of and ability to analyze a root cause of
a specific safety concern in a health care setting. You will create a plan to improve the safety of patients related
to the concern of medication administration safety based on the results of your analysis, using the literature
and professional best practices as well as the existing resources at your chosen health care setting to provide a
rationale for your plan.
Use the Root-Cause Analysis and Improvement Plan [DOCX] template to help you to stay organized and
concise. This will guide you step-by-step through the root cause analysis process.
Additionally, be sure that your plan addresses the following, which corresponds to the grading criteria in the
scoring guide. Please study the scoring guide carefully so you understand what is needed for a distinguished
score.
Analyze the root cause of a patient safety issue or a specific sentinel event pertaining to medication
administration in an organization.
Apply evidence-based and best-practice strategies to address the safety issue or sentinel event
pertaining to medication administration.
Create a feasible, evidence-based safety improvement plan for safe medication administration.
Identify organizational resources that could be leveraged to improve your plan for safe medication
administration.
Communicate in writing that is clear, logical, and professional, with correct grammar and spelling, using
current APA style.
Answer preview to Root-Cause Analysis and Safety Improvement Plan
APA
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