NSQHS Standards: Reflective Analysis of Patient and Medication Safety

This report reflects on the application of two National Safety and Quality Health Service (NSQHS) standards—Communicating for Patient Safety and Medication Safety—in nursing practice, particularly within the context of diabetes care. It emphasizes the critical role of effective communication in building therapeutic relationships with patients, ensuring accurate information exchange, and minimizing medical errors. The report details how active listening, empathy, and respect enhance patient involvement in decision-making. Furthermore, it discusses the importance of adhering to the five rights of medication administration and proper drug storage to prevent medication-related errors. The author's experiences in diabetes care highlight the practical application of these standards in improving patient outcomes and ensuring high-quality care through enhanced communication and meticulous medication management.

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Effective communication plays a contributory role during a patient’s whole healthcare
familiarity, and a great percentage of the accountability falls on the nurses. Accountable for
transmitting information to a number of persons, nurses should be able to interact clearly,
particularly during times of deep stress. Studies display that healthy communication amongst
nurses and diseased persons have numerous benefits (Riley, 2015). Medication Safety Standard
targets to make sure that physicians and other staff safely counsel, dispense and administer
proper medicines, and control medicine use (Safety and quality in health care, 2019). Application
of these two standards in nursing practice will be discussed in this report.
According to me, communicating for patient safety and medication safety standard are
the two most important standards set by NSQHS. The communicating for patient safety sets the
standard for the nurses and other healthcare providers that they must communicate with the
patient with empathy, respect, and carefulness in order to provide the patients high-quality care
(Dunsford, 2009). The communication error between patient nurse, nurse and physician might
lead to big errors that may also cause harm to the patients’ health. For example, not listening to
the patient's statement about his or her disease symptoms, might leads to wrong medical
prescription or wrong nursing intervention. Communication is not restricted between nurses and
patients only when it comes to patient safety. To share the patient information with other team
members like physician it is important to build a good effective communication (Lee, Allen, &
Daly, 2012).
Medicines are the most mutual treatment used in health care. Though suitable use of
medications subsidizes to substantial enhancements in health, medications can also be linked
with harm. Since they are so frequently used, drugs are related to a higher occurrence of errors

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and opposing events or health issues compared to other healthcare interventions (Department of
health, 2014). Certain of these issues are costly, in relations to morbidity, mortality, and assets.
The medication safety standard sets the criteria and the minimum requirement for nurses,
doctors, and chemists to use the medicine in a safe way so that the medication errors can be
reduced.
I have been working mostly in the care of diabetes patients. Diabetes is the most common
disorder affecting people from all around the world. And the advanced stages of this disorder are
life-threatening and incurable, that can only be controlled and the quality of life can be improved
by following the medical standard and good lifestyle. Most of the patients I have dealt with had
diabetes type 2. It is recognized that the patients who have this health condition generally
develops stress and depression related issues due to the prolonged treatment period. They may
also lose the belief in medication and develop thoughts like the medication prescribed to them
cannot help them. Therefore I think these patients should be dealt with more sensibly. This might
not be able to discuss their actual situation with any health professional. Thus it is important to
develop a therapeutic relationship with them and for that effective communication is the key
element to make them feel that we are concern about their health (NSQHC standards, 2017).
When they are assured that their health information will be kept confidential, they discuss their
health condition more accurately and easily. I have used my communication skills like active
listening, showing empathy and respect, and making eye contact, and involving them in the
decision-making process for their treatment. Communication with the other team members is
also important. Effective communication with the patient and physician reduces the medical
errors that may risk the patient's health (Twigg, Duffield, & Evans, 2013).

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The medication-related errors can be prevented by following the medication safety
standard which enables the physician, chemist, and other staff to store managers to prescribe and
administer the drugs more carefully and accurately. It is well recognized that diabetes is a
lifelong disease that is only managed with healthy lifestyle habits and effective treatments. One
of the common medications used in diabetes type 2 is metformin (NSQHC standards, 2017).
The objective of the medication safety standard is to make sure that the physician safely
recommends, disowned and administer the accurate drugs and other staff to manage and store it
also makes sure that the patients should be informed about the drugs and its associated needs and
risks. Role of nurses in this standard is to provide the medicine to the patient by five rights of
medication (Jones, & Treiber, 2010). I think they should provide the right medication to the right
patient in the right doses at the right time and right route of administration. Errors to any of the
rights may lead to health issues. The nurses should do a patient assessment to examine any
negative effects of the particular medicine and record and report to the physician immediately
(Department of health, 2014). The medicines should be kept at a recommended temperature and
should be avoided from direct sunlight. Any patient allergies associated with the drug or its
comment should be examined before the administration. By following this standard the high-
quality care is ensured throughout my nursing career and it enhanced my skills.
Safety and high-quality care are the two most essential requirements of the nursing
profession. Communication is the key factor in preventing medical errors and improving patient
care. NAQHC set some health care standards physician and other health care professionals like
nurses; these are communicating for patient safety and medication safety standard. I have been
working mostly in diabetes care, in which both the standards are highly applicable. Healthy

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communication with the patient and other health care team members allowed me to reduce the
errors occurs due to lack of communications. Effective communication helped me to build a
good therapeutic relationship with the patient, so that they can discuss their actual health
condition freely. On the other hand, medication safety standard helped to minimize the
medication-related errors by following the five rights and storing the drugs as recommended. The
two standards should be learned and used by every nurse and other health care professional to
provide high-quality care.

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References
Department of health (2014). NSQHC standards 4 medication safety. Retrieved from:
https://www.health.qld.gov.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0031/435847/meds-audit-inst.pdf
Dunsford, J. (2009). Structured communication: improving patient safety with SBAR. Nursing
for women's health, 13(5), 384-390.
Jones, J. H., & Treiber, L. (2010). When the 5 rights go wrong: medication errors from the
nursing perspective. Journal of nursing care quality, 25(3), 240-247.
Lee, P., Allen, K., & Daly, M. (2012). A ‘Communication and Patient Safety’training
programme for all healthcare staff: can it make a difference?. BMJ Qual Saf, 21(1), 84-88.
Nadzam, D. M. (2009). Nurses' role in communication and patient safety. Journal of Nursing
Care Quality, 24(3), 184-188.
NSQHC standards (2017). Medication safety standard. Retrieved from:
https://www.nationalstandards.safetyandquality.gov.au/topic/user-guide-acute-and-
community-health-service-organisations-provide-care-children/medication
Riley, J. B. (2015). Communication in nursing. Elsevier Health Sciences.
Safety and quality in health care (2019). Medication safety. Retrieved from:
https://www.safetyandquality.gov.au/our-work/medication-safety/

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Twigg, D. E., Duffield, C., & Evans, G. (2013). The critical role of nurses to the successful
implementation of the National Safety and Quality Health Service Standards. Australian
Health Review, 37(4), 541-546.