What is the Resource Center?
The tabs on the left side of this page provide the public and patients with a library of resources to improve patient safety, outcomes, and engagement with the healthcare system. This page is drawn from resources discussed at WPSC workgroups and from our other educational programming.
This page is meant to be a living library of resources. Do you have additional resources you’d like to see added to one of these topics? Is there a new patient safety topic we should add to the catalog? Please contact us with your ideas.
We encourage you to provide feedback about your experience on the Patient Resources page. Please reach out to wpsc@qualityhealth.org with questions, suggestions or comments.
What is Psychological Safety
Amy Edmondson, a professor of leadership at Harvard Business School and an American scholar of leadership, teaming, and organizational learning, describes Psychological Safety as “The belief that one will not be punished or humiliated for speaking up with ideas, questions, concerns, or mistakes, and that the team is safe for interpersonal risk taking”. Speaking up is important for patient safety, but healthcare professionals often hesitate to voice their concerns. Patients and families, too, are reluctant to speak up. This section contains tactics and tools to encourage a culture where patients and staff feel safe reporting safety issues or concerns without fear of retaliation.
For Providers and Healthcare staff
7 Evidence-Based Strategies to Improve Healthcare Workers’ Psychological Safety
On-line article from “The Nursing Beat”. In a profession often subject to bullying, workplace violence and burnout, ensuring psychological safety is paramount. Describes strategies to promote psychological safety in the workplace.
Exploring psychological safety in healthcare teams to inform the development of interventions: combining observational, survey and interview data
BMC Health Services Research article. Psychological safety allows healthcare professionals to take the interpersonal risks needed to engage in effective teamwork and to maintain patient safety. In order to improve psychological safety in healthcare teams, an in-depth understanding of the complex and nuanced nature of psychological safety is needed. Psychological safety concepts, including voice, silence, learning behaviour, support and familiarity, informed the current study’s investigation of psychological safety. This study aims to use a mixed-methods approach to develop an in-depth understanding of psychological safety within healthcare teams and to build on this understanding to inform the development of future interventions to improve it. O’Donovan and McAuliffe, BMC Health Services Research
PSNet March 2022 Annual Perspective Psychological Safety of Healthcare Staff
Psychological safety was noted as a frequent topic during the annual editorial review of featured articles on the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) Patient Safety Network (PSNet) collection. To further explore the topic, we engaged Mary Beth Kingston, PhD, RN, FAAN, a subject matter expert in nursing practice, standards, and workforce. Dr. Kingston was inducted as a fellow in the American Academy of Nursing in 2020. Recent findings and key themes for psychological safety and the relationship between psychological safety and patient safety are highlighted.
Speaking Up & Listening Skills Strategies for Interprofessional Teams
A tool kit and communication training program for healthcare workers developed by Sara Kim, Research Professor, Surgery, George G.B. Bilsten Professor in the Art of Communication with Peers and Patients, School of Medicine, University of Washington.
Example of content of training program. Contact information: sarakim@uw.edu
BUILDING WORKFORCE TRUST: LESSONS FROM COVID-19
2020 White Paper from Press Ganey. To consistently deliver on the commitment to these values, the health care workforce must also have trust—in their colleagues, their leaders, and their organizations.
For Patients and Families
The Joint Commission Speak Up patient safety program for consumers
The goal of the campaign is to help patients and their advocates become active in their care. There is a tool kit for several health issues. They are made of: Videos, infographics & resources.
For Providers and Patients
Guide to Patient and Family Engagement in Hospital Quality and Safety
To promote stronger engagement, the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) developed a guide to help patients, families, and health professionals work together as partners to promote improvements in care. The Guide to Patient and Family Engagement in Hospital Quality and Safety focuses on four primary strategies for promoting patient/family engagement in hospital safety and quality of care:
– Encourage patients and family members to participate as advisors.
– Promote better communication among patients, family members, and health care professionals from the point of admission.
– Implement safe continuity of care by keeping the patient and family informed through nurse bedside change-of-shift reports.
– Engage patients and families in discharge planning throughout the hospital stay.
Addressing Inequity, Stigma and Bias is the focus of this WPSC workgroup that aims to raise awareness of stigma and bias in healthcare settings and the detrimental outcomes associated with implicit and explicit bias. The resources are related to disparities, stigma, and bias they have been compiled with the help of the Addressing Health Equity, Stigma and Bias workgroup members.
Take a look at our blog: Stigma & Bias in Healthcare: The Obstacles, Consequences and Changes Needed
Has Your Organization Pledged to Be StigmaFree in Washington?
Individuals: Click here to take the Stigma Free Pledge!
Organizations: Click Here to become a Stigma Free Company
The WPSC’s Health Equity, Stigma and Bias workgroup has been hard at work raising awareness of health inequity, stigma and bias, especially around mental health – writing blog posts, recording podcasts, and hosting safe tables to spread institutional knowledge. The workgroup will continue to spread resources and partner with NAMI Washington to spread the Stigma Free Pledge to reduce stigma against mental health.
The StigmaFree campaign is NAMI’s effort to end stigma and create hope for those affected by mental illness. “Through powerful words and actions, we can shift the social and systemic barriers for those living with mental health conditionsTogether, we can encourage acceptance and understanding. Together, we can advocate for a better world. Together, we can turn StigmaFree Me into StigmaFree We.”
Tools & resources organizations can use to implement a stigma free culture
General Topics
Stigma & Bias in Healthcare: The Obstacles, Consequences and Changes Needed
Blog post by: Anita Sulaiman | Principal Consultant and Executive Coach at IBEX Consulting
Discrimination: A Social Determinant of Health
As a stressor, discrimination is a social determinant of health in its own right, getting “under the skin,” or embodied, through the direct physiologic impact of stress. This commentary in Health Affairs describes direct and indirect health effects of discrimination.
Eliminating Disparities to Advance Health Equity and Improve Quality, MHA Keystone Center
The Michigan Hospital Association provides this guide to provide practical
guidance for organizations seeking to eliminate disparities in care to advance health equity by offering strategic pillars for implementation, action resources, and more.
Tony Ruth’s Equity Series Illustrations
These illustrations, created originally for the 2019 Design in Tech Report, are free for your organization to use as simple examples of the differences between inequality, equality, equity, and justice (sometimes referred to as liberation).
Stigma in Health Facilities: Why It Matters and How we Can Change it
Addressing stigma is fundamental to delivering quality healthcare and achieving optimal health. This correspondence article seeks to assess how developments over the past 5 years have contributed to the state of programmatic knowledge—both approaches and methods—regarding interventions to reduce stigma in health facilities, and explores the potential to concurrently address multiple health condition stigmas.
Implicit Racial/Ethnic Bias Among Health Care Professionals and Its Influence on Health Care Outcomes: A Systematic Review
This article, originally published in the American Journal of Public Health, investigates the extent to which implicit racial/ethnic bias exists among health care professionals and examined the relationships between health care professionals’ implicit attitudes about racial/ethnic groups and health care outcomes.
Race/Ethnicity
Race/Ethnicity Resources
CDC: Minority Health Resources
The CDC Minority Health page offers articles, webinars, and conversations for all health sector stakeholders to engage with issues of equity and address disparities. Medline Resources for Specific Populations
Medline offers the following landing pages as a research tool for specific racial and ethnic population health disparities.
- Medline: Black and African American Health
- Medline: Latino and Hispanic American Health
- Medline: American Indian/Alaska Native Health (or Native American)
- Medline: Asian American Health
- Medline: Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander Health
Race/Ethnicity Disparity Literature
IHI: The Role of Racism as a Core Patient Safety Issue
The IHI offers this brief commentary with three things leaders can do to understand contributing factors to maternal mortality disparities, including racism.
AAFP Webcast: The Public Health Crisis of Racism
Watch the special community discussion on the association between racism and health outcomes, implementing practice skills that identify and address racial trauma in the clinical setting, and ways to engage with community partners to advance strategies that advance racial equity in the community.
LGBTQIA+ Healthcare
What Does the Acronym LGBTQ+ Mean?
The LGBTQ+ acronym has evolved over the years to include an expansive community. This resource, from Ok 2 Be Me, operated by KW Counseling, outlines all the possible definitions for the letters of LGBTQIA+.
Human Rights Campaign: Healthcare Equality Index for LGBTQ Patients and Families
Now in its 13th year, the Healthcare Equality Index (HIE) is the national LGBTQ benchmarking tool that evaluates healthcare practices and policies related to equity and inclusion of their LGBTQ+ patients.
MAP: The Disproportionate Impact of COVID-19 on LGBTQ+ Households
The Movement Advancement Project conducted this survey research project in 2020 to determine how COVID-19 has affected LGBTQ+ households compared to non-LGBTQ respondents with funding from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health.
UC Davis LGBTQIA Resource Center
This resource from UC Davis offers articles and resources related to health and equity ranging from behavioral health to housing.
BREE Collaborative
LGBTQ Health Care
Lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and questioning or queer (LGBTQ) persons often have distinct health care needs, including higher rates of behavioral health concerns. Men who have sex with men and transgender people who have sex with men have a higher risk for sexually transmitted infections including HIV. However, stigma and lack of training serve as barriers to consistent high-quality medical care and increase health disparities. The workgroup met from December 2017 to September 2018 to develop recommendations to align care delivery with existing evidence-based, culturally sensitive standard of care for LGBTQ people in Washington State organized around the following focus areas:
- Appropriate communication and language and supportive, inclusive environments
- Guidelines for screening and taking a social and sexual history
- Defining areas requiring LGBTQ-specific standards and systems of care
Gender Disparities
Office of Women’s Health: A-Z Health Topics
This resource offered through the US Department of Health and Human Services serves as a landing page for various health resources specific to women. All resources on the page are copyright-free and available for your education and research purposes.
NIH: Women of Color Health Data Book
This comprehensive data book, developed in 2014, is an essential resource about the status of health disparities among women in the United States and the importance of intersectionality when discussing health outcomes.
American Psychological Association: Health Disparities in Vulnerable Men and Boys
This resource by the APA summarizes several health disparities and concerns for men and boys with a focus on marginalized groups. Specifically, this resource addresses health disparities for men and boys in the BIPOC community, men who identify as sexual minorities, and behavioral health concerns with toxic masculinity.
Mental Health
Pledge to Be StigmaFree in Washington
The WPSC’s Addressing Stigma and Bias workgroup has been hard at work raising awareness of stigma and bias, especially around mental health – writing blog posts, recording podcasts, and hosting safe tables to spread institutional knowledge. The workgroup will continue to spread resources and partner with NAMI Washington to spread the Stigma Free Pledge to reduce stigma against mental health.
The StigmaFree campaign is NAMI’s effort to end stigma and create hope for those affected by mental illness. “Through powerful words and actions, we can shift the social and systemic barriers for those living with mental health conditionsTogether, we can encourage acceptance and understanding. Together, we can advocate for a better world. Together, we can turn StigmaFree Me into StigmaFree We.”
Tools & resources organizations can use to implement a stigma free culture
Institute of Mental Health: Video Gallery on Stigma and Bias
This series of videos aim to increase the awareness of commonly known mental conditions, reduce the stigma associated with mental illness and promote mental health and wellness. It is also important to recognize when you may need help from a professional. Recovery is possible with early detection and treatment.
Ending Discrimination Against People with Mental and Substance Use Disorders: The Evidence for Stigma Change.
This chapter describes direct evidence of how stigma affects mental and substance use disorders and outlines practical steps to take to reduce stigma and discrimination to improve behavioral health outcomes.
Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC) Addiction and Mental Health Resources
Founded in 2010, Addictions.com is a leading informational resource and web guide for those impacted by substance abuse and co-occurring mental health disorders. They curated a wealth of addiction and mental health resources specifically for members of the BIPOC community. Owned and maintained by Rehab Media Network, Addictions.com provides accurate, informative addiction and behavioral health content, a comprehensive directory of rehab facilities and addiction treatment centers across the U.S., a library of free resources, and information for initiating treatment.
BREE Collaborative – Suicide Care
Suicide is a leading cause of death with rates that vary depending on race, ethnicity, age, veteran status, and sexual and gender minority. This BREE workgroup met from February to September 2018 to develop recommendations organized around the following focus areas:
- Identification of suicide risk through universal screening of all patients over 13
- Assessment of suicide risk following identification
- Suicide risk management including clinical pathways for timely and adequate care
- Suicide risk treatment using available evidence
- Follow-up and support after a suicide attempt
- Follow-up and support after a suicide death including for providers
The Clinician Well-being Playbook
Addressing burnout among clinicians and other health care professionals is a top challenge facing hospitals and health systems today, and fundamental to delivering high quality care. These resources will help hospital and health system leaders take action by systematically tackling drivers of burnout and implementing changes to promote well-being.
Peer counselors | Washington State Health Care Authority
Peer counselors
Certified peer counselors work with individuals and parents of children receiving mental health or substance use disorder services. They use their own lived experiences to help their peers find hope and to support their recovery.
Mental Health America (MHA)
Tools 2 Thrive
MHA’s Tools 2 Thrive series provides information, tips, and practical tools that everyone can use to improve their mental health and increase resiliency regardless of the situations they are dealing with.
Mental Health America Self-Assessment Screening Tools
Mental Health America, the nation’s leading community-based nonprofit dedicated to addressing the needs of those living with mental illness, offers several helpful screening tools to determine symptoms of a mental health condition.
Mental Health America Connect
Info on Conditions, Crisis Handling & Support Groups
National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI)
NAMI Connections: Support Groups for People with Mental Health Conditions
NAMI, the National Alliance on Mental Illness, the nation’s largest grassroots mental health organization, provides peer led support groups which offer participants an opportunity to share their experiences and gain support from other attendees.
NAMI Provider: Mental Health Education for Providers
NAMI Provider, a 15-hour program of in-service training, introduces mental health professionals to the unique perspectives of people with mental health conditions and their families.
Substance Use
Live Another Day – 866-720-1044. Extensive information on mental health and substance use resources for People of Color. Their mission is equal access to life-saving resources
Live Another Day was created in early 2021 as a response to the unprecedented increase in substance abuse, mental illness, and deaths resulting from the pandemic. They’re a small, tight-knit group of business professionals and clinicians who have invested thousands of hours towards creating a truly one-of-a-kind recovery resource. They have evaluated over 14,000 treatment providers throughout the country and only list the centers that meet their standards for high-quality care.
Detox Local – 866-640-2242. An excellent resource that features abundant information including mental health and substance use resources specifically for the AAPI (American Asian and Pacific Islander) community. Founded in 2014, DetoxLocal.com was created as a go-to resource for those struggling with addiction and substance abuse related disorders. Their goal is to offer users the ability to find a detox center near to them, without having to sift through sponsored listings.
DetoxRehabs – DetoxRehabs.net, overall goal is to provide trusted resources, relevant information, and referral services for addicted individuals and their families. Their objective is to connect people with addiction, and their families, with the best detox and inpatient treatment program for their recovery needs. They have an extensive directory of addiction treatment programs in every state across the nation, and can assist you in getting the help you or your loved one needs to overcome addiction and mental health disorders.
Addiction Resource
The primary goal of Addiction Resource is to provide information, resources, and strength in support to addicted individuals.
Burnout and Demoralization
“Doctors Aren’t Burned Out From Overwork. We’re Demoralized by Our Health Systems.” An opinion in the New York Times, Feb. 5, 2023 written by Eric Reinhart, a political anthropologist and physician at Northwestern University.
“Is It Burnout? Or Demoralization?”, Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development (ASCD), June 1, 2018, Vol. 75, No. 9
School leaders are rightly worried about teacher burnout. However, what if burnout isn’t the problem? What if, instead, teachers are feeling demoralized? This article looks at the difference between the two and offers up solutions leaders can take to help their teachers stay empowered. Knowing the source of teacher dissatisfaction can help school leaders provide a better remedy for the problem. Part of a theme issue on “Fighting Educator Burnout.” While not a medical journal, this article is very relevant. It describes the difference between burnout and demoralization very well and implications of demoralization.
Health Equity
WSPC and WSMA Health Equity Webinars
The following webinars were developed by the WPSC’s Addressing Stigma and Bias workgroup and administered by WSMA and WPSC. All webinar recordings are available for free on WSMA’s website.
External Resources
Medline/PubMed Health Disparities Resources
This resource collaboration from MedLine and PubMed attempts to compile emerging research on health disparities in one location. This can serve as a starting point for those interested in disparity research for specific populations.
The Cross Cultural Health Care Program
The Cross Cultural Health Care Program offers a variety of resources and educational programs to reduce disparities. Specifically, they offer medical interpreter training for both individuals and organizations.
AHRQ: Guide to Priority Populations
AHRQ is committed to providing quality care to everyone in the United States, and recognizes that part of that commitment is improving care for “priority populations” who have historically experienced poor health outcomes. AHRQ’s current priority populations are women, racial/ethnic minorities, children/adolescents, the elderly, low-income, and rural/inner-city residents.
Disabilities
Quality Health for People with Disabilities
The latest episode of the New Wave of Healthcare podcast is a conversation with Kim Connor, executive director of the Washington State Independent Living Council and Mark Leeper, executive director of the Disability Action Network Northwest. Both advocates describe the unique challenges facing persons with disability in the US healthcare systems, with personal stories and statistics that offer insight into the way forward. Check out the podcast on our website or your favorite podcast app, or read the transcript here.
The Pendleton Project: Making Health Care Accessible to All
The small town of Pendleton, Oregon, provides an example of how best to ensure disability rights for a community and tackle the barriers to health care faced by people with disabilities.
CDC’s website on Disability and Health Promotion
Disability Rights Education & Defense Fund
One of the older and successful disability advocacy organizations. They were heavily involved in the passage of the ADA.
Blog and Podcasts
The Safety Blog
The Safety Blog serves to highlight patient safety news, stories, and initiatives aimed at upholding our mission: safe care for every patient, every time, everywhere.
THE NEW WAVE of HEALTHCARE Podcast
The tides of American healthcare are shifting rapidly. And while that means healthcare is in the news a lot more than it used to be, it doesn’t mean the public necessarily understands what’s going on. Even those of us in the healthcare world have a hard time keeping up. Amid all this uncertainty emerges THE NEW WAVE of HEALTHCARE, a podcast designed to help you wade through the complexities of our healthcare system, how it got this way, where it’s going, and most importantly, how it affects you and your loved ones. We’ll provide rapid-fire explainers to help you grasp the complex topics, introduce you to some of healthcare’s most interesting players, offer a platform for patient stories, and throw you a lifesaver when things get choppy out there.
Medication errors are one of the leading causes of injury to hospital patients, and unintended medication discrepancies occur in nearly one-third of patients at admission. Medication reconciliation refers to the process of avoiding such inadvertent inconsistencies by reviewing the patient’s medication regiment and comparing it with a proposed regimen. These resources can help care providers and patients understand the medications they are taking and create future care plans that avoid errors and harm.
Medication Reconciliation
Presentations
Steve Riddle, Pharmacy OneSource
Medication Reconciliation, Definition & Drivers
Medication Safety Workgroup
PowerPoint slides for patients/lay audiences. You are welcome to use these slides and to customize them.
Tools and Resources
Brochures from Providence St. Mary PDF Version | PDF Version en Espanol
My Medicine List mini-poster: prints on standard letter size paper (8 ½ by 11 inches). PDF version
My Medicine List poster: requires special printer (18 x 24 inches; can be printed at your local copy shop). PDF version
Opioid prescribing practices have caused considerable harm and addiction in the United States, leading healthcare professionals to reconsider the practice of pain management. Below is a living library of resources dedicated to addressing the opioid crisis both locally and nationally, available for WPSC members to reference and implement in their own organizations. Please use this page as your hub of opioid safety information and share any resources we may be missing.
The TakeCharge Campaign offers 5 Simple Steps for safer healthcare! The campaign focuses on empowering patients to play an important role in their health care team and offers a way forward for improved outcomes. The five steps of the TakeCharge campaign are:
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