Reportable Incidents
Published: 28 August 2019
Published: 28 August 2019
Incident reporting is an accountability of all staff working in healthcare facilities.
Knowing how to fill out an incident report is necessary knowledge for any professional. An incident report should be completed immediately after an incident has occurred and appropriate corrective action followed.
Incident reports are integral to a functional healthcare system that is committed to ongoing improvement and transparency.
The following is intended as a general guide to filling out an incident report. Your organisation may have certain criteria involved in completing an incident report and it is advised that you make yourself aware of the appropriate policies specific to your facility.
Incident reporting relates to Standard 5: Organisation’s Service Environment and Standard 6: Feedback and Complaints of the Aged Care Quality Standards. It also relates toStandard 1.11 of The National Safety and Quality Health Service (NSQHS) Standards.
A reportable incident is anything that happens out of the ordinary in a facility. Specifically, unplanned events or situations that result in, or have the potential to result in injury, ill health, damage or loss (Benalla Health 2011).
A clinical incident is defined by the Australian Commission on Safety and Quality in Healthcare as “an event or circumstance that resulted, or could have resulted, in unintended and/or unnecessary harm to a person and/or a complaint, loss or damage” (ACSQHC 2017).
(My Health Record 2019)
Clinical incidents could involve:
(Benalla Health 2011; Ausmed 2016)
(Benalla Health 2011; Ausmed 2016)
Take into consideration the above as well as other issues as outlined by your organisation.
Before documenting information regarding the care provided prior to and following the incident in a medical record, ensure that the affected person(s) in the aftermath of the incident is safe and that all necessary steps have been taken to support and treat them.
Ensure preventative measures are in place in anticipation of further injury. Inform a line manager and, if appropriate, preserve evidence in the surrounding area (SA Health 2019).
An incident report requires questions relevant to who, what, when, where, how and why to be completed (Department of Health Victoria 2011; Ausmed 2016).
Who
What
When
Where
How and why
(Department of Health Victoria 2011; Ausmed 2016)
(Ausmed 2016; SA Health 2011)
Incidents can be reported by staff, visitors, community members, students, contractors, patients/clients/residents, and volunteers (Benalla Health 2011).
An incident report not only has the potential to shed light on a particular incident, but may reveal room for improvement in systems, procedures, and environments.
In addition, an incident report:
(SA Health 2019)
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Question 1 of 3
Which of the following is a non-clinical reportable incident?
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