Child Health Patient Safety Watches
Emerging Safety Risks for Pediatric Hospitals
Stay aware of these known risks to ensure patient safety.
Non-Accidental Trauma
Failure to diagnose non-accidental trauma results in a high likelihood of reoccurring harm.
Bedside Procedures Coordination Failures
Teams may overlook the coordinated planning required to perform complex procedures safely.
Human Risk Factors in ECMO Care
Though ECMO is a life-saving intervention for critically ill children, it can pose significant risks to pediatric populations.
Unrecognized Neonatal Sepsis
Neonatal sepsis often has highly varied and nonspecific symptoms, making it difficult to identify.
Unrecognized Clinical Deterioration
Children compensate differently and for longer periods than adults do, making it more difficult to recognize deterioration.
Pressure Injuries
Pressure injuries occur in up to a quarter of pediatric hospital cases, frequently progress after detection, and may become sentinel events.
Discharge Medication Errors
Pediatric patients are at high risk of medication errors due to age- and weight-based dosing and because some patients may not be able to recognize discrepancies.
Procedural Anchoring Bias
Biases can affect health care providers’ medical decision-making and judgment and prevent them from seeking further assessment or guidance.
Wrong-Site Frenulum Procedural Interventions
Performing interventions on the wrong site has led to repeat visits to the operating room and prolonged anesthesia requirements.
About the PSO
The Child Health Patient Safety Organization® enables children’s hospitals to share safety event information and experiences to accelerate the elimination of preventable harm.
