Patient Safety and Quality: An Evidence-Based Handbook for Nurses

A new resource for nurses that shares evidence-based practices for providing safe, high - quality care is now available from AHRQ. The new 3-volume book, Patient Safety and Quality: An Evidence-Based Handbook for Nurses has been created in collaboration with the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and examines the issues involved in providing high - quality and safe care across a variety of health care settings, from hospitals to clinics to nursing homes. AHRQ nurse researcher Ronda Hughes served as editor of the book.

Nurses have a vital role in improving the safety and quality of patient care. The book offers proven strategies and interventions they can use to enhance patient outcomes. There are six main sections in the book:

• patient safety and quality
• evidence-based practice
• and patient-centered care
• work environment for nurses
• patient safety and quality improvement
• tools for quality improvement and patient safety that nurses can readily use in practice

Each chapter includes a background section and an analysis of the literature. At the end of each chapter, nurses will find two critical components: The first, Practice Implications, shows how the evidence can be used to make practice changes and Research Implications outlines key research gaps that nurse researchers can target. It is useful for clinicians as a guide when making health care decisions and improving care delivery. Also, faculty and graduate students will also find questions and issues that can be used to develop dissertation topics. Also, researchers might be interested in the research implications sections because they really highlight areas we need to study further to improve care.

The book should also be used by other clinicians and researchers. The majority of the information presented in this book does not appear anywhere else. For instance, the chapters on medication reconciliation, error reporting and disclosure and quality improvement methods offer the first systematic reviews in these areas. Also, with the growing demand to improve care quality, for example the new never events that Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services will be putting in place October 1, such as health care associated infections and patient falls with injury and also addressed in this book.

Patient Safety and Quality: An Evidence-Based Handbook for Nurses, is available online at ahrq.gov/qual/nurseshdbk/. You can also order the handbook as a searchable CD-ROM or in a three-volume printed set. To order, contact the AHRQ Publications Clearinghouse at 1-800-358-9295 or via e-mail at AHRQPubs@ahrq.hhs.gov.