Nursing homes are obliged to provide a safe and stable environment for their patients. This notion requires workers to possess adequate knowledge of their workplace, procedures, and activities in order to execute them properly. Human errors and violations of these requirements may lead to disastrous outcomes, which must be assessed thoroughly to prevent further similar events. This paper will discuss the accident in a nursing home in Bellbrook, Ohio.
There are two apparent sides that have caused patients’ deaths, including nurses at the location and their partners who delivered the wrong product. In both cases, the lack of attention to detail, which might have been caused by insufficient control systems, led to the use of a dangerous chemical instead of oxygen (Occupational Safety and Health Administration, 2000). The work overload might have been a detrimental factor as well. Employees from the nursing home are bound to provide their services at a lesser quality due to these conditions. The gas tank provider did not check the labels on its products and did not properly account for each type. The nursing home workers failed to recognize this error and did not check the gas before hooking the tanks to the system. It is essential to understand that the factors that lead to such accidents are multifactorial and often include issues with competence that overlay lacking communication (Andersson et al., 2018). People have to be accountable for their actions and strive to achieve greater outcomes through knowledge, their decisions must be assessed and supported by peers and leaders, and their values must align with their client’s needs.
In conclusion, the accident that killed four residents could have been prevented if the involved sides had paid more attention to detail. Developing a culture that prioritizes a firm’s values, promotes accountability and teamwork, and possesses a strong leader can help organizations prevent similar events. The nursing home made a critical error by falling into a routine that failed to support the required safety standards.
References
Andersson, Å., Frank, C., Willman, A. M., Sandman, P., & Hansebo, G. (2018). Factors contributing to serious adverse events in nursing homes.Journal of Clinical Nursing, 27(1-2), 354-362. Web.
Occupational Safety and Health Administration. (2000). Accident 837914: Four nursing home patients died from inhaling nitrogen gas (0522000). Web.