Quality of Care Introduction

Triple Aim is essential when organizations and nurses want a healthier population
because it proposes novel designs that better identify issues and solutions upstream and outside
acute health care settings. The Institute for Healthcare Improvement (IHI) created a framework
in 2007 to assist healthcare in adopting specific strategies to optimize performance (Obucina et
al., 2018). The IHI termed the framework the Triple Aim because it employs a “three-pronged
strategy.” The Triple Aim focuses on three areas: enhancing patient experience, lowering
healthcare expenses per person, and enhancing the population’s general health. According to the
Healthcare Improvement (IHI), developing the triple Aim would be essential to the success of
healthcare organizations transitioning to value-based payment systems. This paper discusses how
I would apply the Triple Aim principles to improve the safety, quality, and satisfaction in the
long-term or acute care setting; my current/future role in healthcare as a director of nursing in
improving patient safety and satisfaction, and cost of care; and the practices I might apply to
reduce medical errors among front-line nursing staff.
Applying the Triple Aim to improve quality, safety, and satisfaction in the acute

care or long-term care setting

The Triple Aim initiative focuses on improving patient interactions with the healthcare
system as one of its main objectives. I would evaluate the general health of the communities I
serve, identify any current issues or areas of risk, and evaluate total mortality to do this
efficiently and at the population level. After evaluation, I would come up with a patient
experience strategy that will ensure staff members will be aware of their duty to see to it that all
patients receive not only excellent clinical care but also that care is delivered in a way that

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recognizes the unique needs of each individual and takes care of them with empathy and
compassion. This is because patients who receive better care typically experience better health
outcomes.
Moreover, to ensure the effectiveness of the patient experience strategy, I would monitor
the strategy by administering a survey to a random sample of patients every six weeks. The
survey will ask patients for feedback about various areas, such as responsiveness of hospital
staff, communication with healthcare providers, discharge information, and communication
about medicines. This will enable patients to navigate the healthcare system more quickly and
encourage communication amongst providers, providers, patients, and their families.
On the other hand, The Triple Aim’s cost-reduction goal pushes healthcare institutions to
find ways to lower treatment costs without sacrificing quality while also identifying at-risk
groups and addressing community health issues (Mery et al., 2017). Healthcare is one of the
most expensive systems globally, accounting for a significant percentage of a country’s gross
domestic product. Health care facilities would apply Triple Aims principles to decrease treatment
costs, particularly in the long-term patient treatments and critical processes for acute care. People
recovering from serious medical events like stroke or cardiac surgeries spend a lot on treatment,
creating more financial challenges at an individual and family level. Thus, reducing costs and
delivering quality care will lead to positive health outcomes, including improved access to acute
and long-term medical services.
The Triple Aim’s emphasis on detecting and mitigating community risk is one of its most
essential components. Everyone who resides in the neighborhood where a healthcare
organization operates has the potential to become a patient (Obucina et al., 2018). With this
objective, I would help create treatment visibility, assisting in long-term care by defining the

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projected outcomes and their importance. This would include involving patients and families
when designing care models, building a cost-control platform, and supporting system integration
and execution. Visibility fosters effective communication in the healthcare industry, improving
organizational performance and patient care. Before authorizing newly offered treatment
initiatives, Triple Aim in healthcare institutions aids in generating defined strategies for
enhanced performances.

Reflection on Future Role in Healthcare

The Triple Aim of enhancing patient experience, lowering costs, and enhancing
population health has received much attention in the context of health care reform (Obucina et
al., 2018). Nursing is very process-oriented regarding how we build relationships with patients
and families, evaluate and treat patients, and work with colleagues to ensure the effectiveness of
treatment and an excellent patient experience. As the future director of nursing, it will be my
duty to ensure that the healthcare system is effective. Since system or process failures are the
root cause of errors, it will be crucial for me as a director of nursing to employ a variety of
process-improvement strategies to find process bottlenecks, inefficiencies, inefficient care, and
strategies to avoid errors. Each of these methods entails evaluating performance and the structure
of the health system and using the results to guide improvement. This includes evaluating the
structure, procedures, and results of the medical system, such as the hospital’s bed capacity, the
number of nurses with advanced training, and other resources like health insurance using
structure measurements. Therefore, as the director of nursing, there are several factors I would
take into account while adopting the Triple Aim in healthcare facilities to increase patient safety,
high-quality care, and cost-effective care.

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First, I would ensure a comprehensive discharge strategy is in place. The comprehensive
discharge strategy must incorporate patients and their families in the discharge planning process;
this can help achieve better patient results, such as fewer unscheduled readmissions and higher
levels of satisfaction with their care (Cajanding, 2017). The discharge planning strategy will seek
to reduce adverse events and lower readmissions by involving patients and families in the
process of going home from the hospital. To limit negative occurrences and prevent
readmissions, doctors must successfully convey knowledge to the patient and family before
discharge from the hospital (Doud et al., 2021). Making this transition in care safe and effective
requires involving patients and their families in the discharge planning process. This will include
involving them in discharge team meetings and identifying the family members who will provide
care for the patient at home.
In addition, the comprehensive strategy will involve educating patients and their families
on critical areas to prevent potential adverse health issues or emergencies at home. Education can
focus on a broad range of themes, from seeking essential support to better regulate chronic
diseases to available support systems (government and non-governmental aid) to review
medications, warning signs, and symptoms (Doud et al., 2021). Another consideration that I
would make is patient involvement in handover through a person-centered handover framework.
This is the transfer of primary nursing duty of care from one nurse to another in nursing care
settings. Person-centered handover encourages and embraces more patient involvement than
standard professional-professional transfer, and patient participation during this process
encourages knowledge sharing, communication, treatment planning, and patient self-care (Kidd,
2019). Structured clinical handover has improved patient safety and care by reducing
communication errors within and between health service organizations. Because crucial

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information is more likely to be accurately conveyed and acted upon, I think including patient
viewpoints in the handover process would improve patient safety and make it easier to provide
individualized treatment.

Practices to Minimize Medical Errors

Healthcare professionals and the public continue to be concerned about medical errors,
mainly how to prevent harm emanating from preventable medical blunders. Many healthcare
professionals are reluctant to report errors for fear of retaliation, which can lead to fines,
cancellation of practicing licenses, or even incarceration (Marvanova & Henkel, 2017). Most
healthcare professionals often opt to keep mum rather than report errors for fear of being
reprimanded or retaliated against. If the system responsible for the error is not found and
repaired, this could cause additional patient harm; as a result, self-denial may have a detrimental
effect on patient care outcomes (Marvanova& Henkel, 2017).
Medication errors can precipitate significant bodily harm and even patient deaths,
regardless of whether they result from systemic problems or human error. The healthcare
provider and organization could suffer considerable financial, psychological, and emotional
ramifications due to these avoidable errors. It can sometimes result in a brand-new, transient or
permanent condition, like itchiness, rashes, or skin deformity. Patients or patients’ families may
also sue healthcare professionals or institutions for medical negligence, leading to reputational
damage, fines, losses, and even incarceration. Hospitals may have to pay hefty legal fees and
potential settlement costs. Additionally, hospitals might have to pay for the staff members who
made a mistake, decreased productivity, and the patients’ unintentionally prolonged hospital
stays and treatment costs.

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Therefore, as a nurse, I would implement several factors that would help to minimize
medical errors. I would ensure that the management develops a safety culture and a robust error
reporting system at the organization level. The ideal safety system will have a robust, simple
method for reporting problems, a culture that does not place blame on errors committed and
reporting failures, and rewards open communication (Rogers et al., 2017). This strategy will
improve error reporting and identification, creating a continual process improvement and
problem discovery cycle. To deliver high-quality treatment and promote a culture of safety,
communication and collaboration with risk managers, safety officers, and pharmacy executives
will be essential. This will promote an atmosphere of justice and transparency, making it easier
for nurses and other clinicians to report mistakes honestly and accurately. A just culture must
emphasize the distinctions between human error, reckless behavior, and behavior that puts others
in danger. It must administer justice according to how well an employee made their decision.
Most importantly, a just culture will evaluate the organization has sufficient and safe procedural
tools to evaluate and monitor daily hazards.
Another factor that I would implement is patient involvement in safety protocols and
procedures. I would encourage helping patients to take an active role in working towards
reducing medical errors. Patients and their caregivers are undoubtedly critical players in
developing safe healthcare plans. As a front-line nurse, I would encourage patients to be their
best advocates by giving them information to guide them to make informed decisions and
monitoring their own health. For example, I will train patients to follow prescription instructions
to avoid unwarranted side effects and consequences.
Conclusion

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In a nutshell, the Triple Aim is a vital framework that I would incorporate as a nurse to
improve patient experience, reduce healthcare costs, and improve the population’s health. By
developing a patient experience strategy, I would ensure that all patients receive adequate care
and assistance from the nurses. This is because addressing the needs of patients can lead to
positive health outcomes, which is my goal. Furthermore, reducing healthcare costs is critical
since treatment for patients with long-term care is expensive and inaccessible to many. This is
why it is essential to develop strategies to reduce healthcare expenditures while improving the
experience of care means. As a nurse, my role in ensuring that all aspects of the patient
experience are addressed thoroughly and cohesively because of ongoing interactions with
patients is irreplaceable. For instance, I must oversee moving patients safely between different
settings and levels of care; the process must follow standard procedures to lower medical errors.

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References

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