Ms Stephanie Wraight1
1St John WA, Belmont, Australia
Stephanie is a Registered Paramedic with a passion for clinical leadership and refining prehospital practice. Stephanie has worked as a Clinical Support Paramedic and Clinical Educator, utilising her experience to guide and develop paramedics to deliver high quality healthcare and achieve the best possible patient outcomes.
Presentation Title and Overview: The Paramedic Response to Error: An Approach in Paramedic Education
Within any autonomous health industry such as prehospital care, cultivating a culture of patient safety is paramount. This involves mitigating risks and fostering enhanced learning to optimise outcomes for patients. Traditional hierarchical structures often hinder open discourse about mistakes and clinical incidents. To address this challenge, an innovative program was developed within St John WA, aiming to transform paramedic education around errors through facilitated sessions.
Methods/Actions:
This unique initiative focuses on breaking down hierarchical barriers by encouraging open dialogue about mistakes and clinical incidents. The program centres on sharing experiences and mistakes, fostering a flat hierarchy that promotes a deeper understanding of clinical incidents. Addressing cognitive biases and common traps inherent in prehospital care, participants engage in a collective exploration of lessons learned. The ultimate goal is to normalise vulnerability and create safe spaces where proactive approaches to patient safety are encouraged.
Results:
The success of the program is evident through positive feedback from paramedic students. This feedback not only equips paramedics with valuable insights but also empowers them to implement similar environments for their students. This cascading effect contributes to the broader establishment of a patient safety-centric culture within the paramedic profession. The initiative has proven effective in reducing the perception that making a mistake will result in punitive measures, thereby fostering a proactive approach to patient safety.
Conclusion:
This presentation will delve into the program’s structure, experiences, and outcomes, offering a compelling case study on the transformative impact of fostering open communication, shared learning, and vulnerability in paramedic education. Attendees will gain valuable insights into replicable strategies that can be adapted in various healthcare settings to enhance patient safety and cultivate a culture of continuous improvement. The program’s success highlights its potential to instigate positive cultural shifts within paramedic education and, by extension, the broader healthcare sector.