Strategy Submission

Senior students at Notre Dame College organize a patient safety conference as part of a Health Policy course to fulfill the requirements for the degree of Bachelor of Science in Nursing.  Using the QSEN competencies related to safety, evidence-based practice and teamwork,  students plan the conference in the beginning of the senior year.  Although senior nursing students are responsible for the planning and implementation of the conference, junior and sophomore students also have an active role.  Each class is given an assignment for the patient safety conference corresponding to respective curricular level objectives.  For example, sophomore-level student poster presentations focus on the factors creating a culture of safety and assessment criteria for safe patient handling.  Junior-level student poster presentations integrate evidence-based practice to identify clinical questions.  Senior-level poster presentations address policy issues concerning quality of care and safe healthcare delivery.   A few examples of student work include:  Effective Communication among Caregivers, Reducing Harm from Anticoagulants and Joint Commission National Patient Safety Goals.   Senior nursing students are divided into four teams:  publicity, evaluation, set-up and registration.  The senior student teams are responsible for organizing all areas of the conference such as-arranging a venue, locating a speaker, ordering refreshments and working as a team to implement all logistics related to the conference.  Senior students are also required to work as a team with the junior and sophomore nursing students so patient safety is integrated among all three levels of the curriculum.  Also, nursing students from nursing schools in the region are invited to attend and present posters.  The patient safety conference enables nursing students throughout the northeast Ohio region to focus on patient safety by participating in an active student-centered learning event.  In addition, a patient safety speaker presents students with new information related to patient safety.  Conference participants evaluate the conference by completing evaluation forms at the end of the conference.