The Management of Lagos University Teaching Hospital (LUTH), has been urged to ensure implementation of a robust quality improvement and patient safety culture in the hospital.
A Healthcare Management Professional, Dr Olufunke Ijimakin, gave the advice at the 6th Annual Scientific Conference of the hospital on Thursday in Lagos.
The conference had the theme: “Quality Improvement And Patient Safety in Hospital Services”, and a Sub-theme: “Role of Artificial Intelligence in Hospital Services.
Ijimakin, also the Keynote Speaker, described patient safety as “everybody’s business”, urging hospitals to inclulcate patients safety consciousness in their operational systems and among staff to avoid medical errors.
According to her, medical errors are bound to occur in every hospital both in the developed and developing countries, as statistics revealed that three million people die annually due to medical errors, while 70 per cent of the errors are preventable.
“Patient harm is a very serious matter; it is better to prepare and prevent the incident from occuring, in order to avoid compensations, sorry and other burdens of medical error at the end.
“The hospital needs to prevent preventable harms and errors, have a patient safety culture and quality improvement for better treatment outcomes,” Ijimakin said.
The Chief Medical Director of LUTH, Prof. Wasiu Adeyemo, reiterated commitment of the hospital to quality improvement, having instituted a Quality Control Assurance Committee since three years ago.
Adeyemo stated that the Federal Government had put a lot of resources to upgrade infrastructure across public hospitals – LUTH inclusive, underscoring need for the hospital to be prepared to measure quality improvement and patient safety.
“With the investment that our government is making in healthcare, we need to call our attention to the fact that government is doing its own part.
“We as employees, must render the services according to standard.
“So, measure whatever that you do; there’s no way you can know whether you are improving or not if it’s not measured.
“That’s what we are doing by having the committee in place since three years ago. We actually measure .
“We must do our best to be the best that we can be in terms of providing quality care for Nigerians,” Adeyemo said.
In his remarks, the Special Guest of Honour, Prof. Saad Ahmed, reiterated efforts of the government to improve healthcare, saying that a wide range of medical services including kidney transplantation, open heart surgery were presently offered within the country.
Ahmed, also Chairman, Commitee of Chief Medical Directors of Federal Tertiary Hospitals in Nigeria, stated that efforts were underway toward compilation of a compendium of obtainable healthcare services in Nigeria to enable citizens know where to get any needed healthcare services.
“Quality improvement and patient safety is multifaceted; the hospital management must prioritise welfare of the staff to enable maintain patientt safety and render improved services,” Ahmed said.
In his address, the Chairman of the occasion, Prof. Emmanuel Jeje, underscored the need to stimulate the desire for research among students of LUTH schools, awarding a plague and cash prize for the best annual research work student henceforth.
Jeje, also a Urologist, explained that research improved quality of services, advising healthcare practitioners to prioritise patient’s safety.
Earlier, Prof. Rufus Ojewola, Chairman of the Scientific Conference and Local Organising Committee, described the theme as both timely and critical.
“As healthcare professionals, we are entrusted with lives, and every decision we make carries profound implications.
“The conference provides us with a platform to reflect, evaluate and innovate – identify gaps in our system and implement strategies that ensure safer and high-quality care for all patients,” Ojewola said.
