“Ask CHPSO” is a regular column in the bimonthly Patient Safety News and is intended to provide
answers to common inquiries. If you have a question, please
contact us at (916) 552-2600 or info@chpso.org. All inquirers will
remain anonymous.
We suggest that you review the Patient Safety Evaluation
System (PSES) templates
available to members on the CHPSO website. There are two
versions: one concise and one thorough. If you choose to use
these templates, we highly advise you review both of them and
determine what works best for your facility. The PSES works
alongside but does not replace existing policies you may have in
place; however, it is possible to include information from
existing policies or combine existing policies with the PSES
policy.
You may share patient safety work product (PSWP) with health care
providers holding privileges at your institution. You can also
share PSWP with your workforce, which includes employees,
volunteers, trainees, contractors, or other persons whose
conduct, in the performance of work for your organization is
under your organization’s direct control, whether or not employed
by you. These are not considered disclosures under the Patient Safety
Act.
A patient safety
evaluation system is the system you use to collect, manage, and
analyze information (patient safety work product) for reporting
to your patient safety organization, CHPSO. There is no
one-size-fits-all policy; each health care facility has needs
that others may not experience. It is important to keep in mind
that the PSES can be an evolutionary document and it is
beneficial to revisit it regularly. While most hospitals submit
all incident reports and RCAs to CHPSO, some may only report
specific event categories.