While risk management and risk assessment have different goals, I believe that their aim is similar, because they both focus on reducing the potential risks for their customers, with the exception that risk management programs also have to focus on the financial side of the cases. Therefore, it is unlikely that there will be a conflict between the risk management and risk assessment if they are a part of one program. Many factors, inducing personal and organizational, are able to influence the risk outcomes for a patient; these factors need to be addressed by both programs in order to evaluate what measures and rules should be followed.
Moreover, uneducated staff and patients can potentially lead to incidents of malpractice lawsuits; here, risk management and its assessment are linked to each other again. While risk assessment can help with preventive actions, as well as patients’ and staff’s education, risk management is able to monitor the progress that is being made (or that it is not made). Nevertheless, the problem that might emerge is the funding between the programs, as both of them can require significant investment (Haimes, 2015). It needs to be decided which of the programs requires more funding and how this decision will influence the outcomes. Here the conflict between the programs can emerge. However, funding for the programs heavily relies on the context and the hospital where they are launched. If the hospital has a long history of successful risk management programs, it is more likely that it will receive the bigger part of the funding.
The problem of risk in the medical profession is common because certain medical activities and conditions present a higher level of risk compared to other industries. It seems reasonable to assume that physicians who treat mentally ill patients (i.e. psychiatrists) are the ones that should take part in the risk management program. Moreover, “many psychiatrists are likely to encounter a malpractice claim against them at some point in their careers” (Rogers, Neumann, & Myers, 2015). Thorough risk management will help them reduce the number of claims they might face. Some of the claims, however, concern inaccurately prescribed medications, false diagnoses or information given by the medical doctor, faulty equipment, etc. Nurse practitioners can reduce the risk by organizing their work environment and improving its physical design (Gimenes, Marck, Atila, & Cassiani, 2015).
This is needed because the challenges that nurses face during their working process can have an adverse impact on patients as well (Gimenes et al., 2015). Factors that can contribute to the present risk are look-alike medications and objectionable organization of tools and medications in medication rooms. Up to 33% of medical errors made during hospitalization and treatment are linked to the poor organization of nurses’ workplace (Gimenes et al., 2015, p. 5). Risk management programs can help nurses understand and evaluate the possible challenges and risks more precisely; moreover, they will also reduce the hospital’s costs and the amount of lost time spent on resolving of the problems.
References
Gimenes, F. R. E., Marck, P. B., Atila, E. G., & Cassiani, S. H. D. B. (2015). Engaging nurses to strengthen medication safety: Fostering and capturing change with restorative photographic research methods. International Journal of Nursing Practice, 21(6), 741-748.
Haimes, Y. Y. (2015). Risk modeling, assessment, and management. New York, NY: John Wiley & Sons.
Rogers, J. E., Neumann, C. L., & Myers, W. C. (2015). Commentary: Bringing order to chaos — how psychiatrists know the standard of care. Journal of the American Academy of Psychiatry and the Law Online, 43(4), 451-455.