The Mount Sinai journal of medicine, New York
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This report reviews and critically evaluates the development of 3 movements in healthcare that have had a profound impact on changes occurring at all levels of medical education: patient safety, healthcare simulation, and competency-based education (exemplified by the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education). The authors performed a critical and selective review of the literature from 1999 to 2011 to identify uses of simulation to address patient-safety issues aligned according to the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education 6 core competencies: (1) patient care; (2) medical knowledge; (3) interpersonal and communication skills; (4) professionalism; (5) practice-based learning; and (6) systems-based practice. ⋯ Simulation-based learning can lead to positive patient outcomes and reduction of medical errors particularly when used for individual skills. However, particular attention needs to be placed on the organizational context in which it is implemented if improvements in practice-based learning and systems-based practice are to be realized.
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Reduction in retained surgical items is an important part of any operating room patient-safety effort. Any item used in an operation can result in a retained surgical item, but sponges are the most frequent and the abdomen is the most common location. ⋯ This review will examine counting, teamwork, radiography, and new technology as methods used to prevent retained surgical items. Even though none of these techniques individually is likely to completely prevent retained surgical items, when used together the numbers can be reduced.