The Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality announced the release of its "Guide to Patient and Family Engagement in Hospital Safety and Quality," which provides four evidence-based strategies for engaging patients and families in their care.
The guide is designed to help hospitals eliminate communication gaps among patients, their families and their healthcare providers to improve safety and quality. The guide includes educational tools, training materials and examples for each strategy, which hospitals can use to implement patient- and family-centered care practices. Here are the four strategies to engage patients and families in safety and quality:
1. Work with patients and families as advisors.
2. Communicate to improve quality.
3. Conduct nurse bedside shift reports.
4. Engage patients and family members in discharge planning.
AHRQ tested these strategies at Advocate Trinity Hospital in Chicago, Anne Arundel Medical Center in Annapolis, Md., and Patewood Memorial Hospital in Greenville, S.C. These hospitals reported increased HCAHPS scores, improved time management and "more positive views of patient- and family-centered care," according to the release.
AHRQ will work with HHS' Partnership for Patients initiative to spread the guide to hospitals across the country.
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