The Joint Commission (Oak Brook, Ill.) has launched a new consulting service. The Commission says Joint Commission Resources (JCR), a not-for-profit affiliate of The Joint Commission, will provide an objective, expert evaluation of technology with a patient safety focus.
According to the group, its new service, Safe Adoption of Technology, aims to support the highest level of patient safety as JCR assists both hospitals and technology vendors in safely implementing technology through the integration of patient safety, informatics and clinical care expertise.
The key focus of the consulting service is the convergence of technology and clinical processes to support optimal patient care, it says. The Joint Commission claims the service can be applied at three critical phases of technology adoption:- Planning and selection — this includes decisions about functionality, introducing new technology, retiring or modifying old systems, creating an implementation timeline, practical sequencing, and involving key stakeholders in the process.
- Design/build/implementation — JCR’s consulting team assesses how the adoption plan is built, anticipates its impact throughout the organization, recommends safety enhancements, and highlights training needs.
- Post implementation — after going live, there is still a need for troubleshooting, spotting unforeseen problems, creating medication management checklists for staff, and so forth.
