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Organizational Risk Management Interview

Student's Name

Professor's Name

Institutional Affiliation

Date of Submission
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Risk Management interview

Risk management is a vital aspect of any facility since it helps the facility recognize

and handle potential risks before they occur. The interview was performed in a facility

registering high numbers of patient falls, and the interviewee was the head of risk

management initiatives since they helped acquire the facility's strategic targets and enhance

patient welfare. The risk manager's responsibility, as he elaborated during the interview, is to

see to it that specific risk mitigation approaches are actualized and tracked to assess their

success. This essay targets embroidering the design in which the risk control initiative is

actualized in the facility using the data offered by the manager during the question-answer

forum.

Risk Management Strategies Used

The first question was regarding the facility's risk management approaches in its risk

control initiative. Since the facility cares for various patients with chronic illnesses and older

age, the most challenging risk they encounter is patient falls (Zhang et al., 2019). Concerning

this risk, the risk manager elaborated that some of his approaches actualized include floor

renovations, grill installation, and aided walking approaches (WHO, 2021). Also, they

utilized walking therapy sessions for fall reduction and elimination. Under risk minimization,

the facility removed hindrances on the walk halls and installed guard rails on the walls to

assist individuals as they navigate the facility. The manager also mentioned that the facility

ensured floors are clean and not slippery to avoid falls due to sliding (WHO, 2021).

Addressing Key Professional Legal and Ethical Uses

Following how the educational risk control initiative of the facility handles vital

professional aspects such as vicarious liability, negligence avoidance, and malpractice

handling, the manager highlighted that they address these issues separately. For example,

negligence prevention is achieved through employing employee sensitization. Staff members

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are regularly informed on the significance of abiding by the stipulated code of conduct in

their practice (Schwan, 2021). Also, constant education on avoiding instances threatening

patient safety is conducted.

On the other hand, malpractice litigation is handled by ensuring staff members

document the operations of the day and uphold the current healthcare trends. Finally,

vicarious liability is addressed in the initiative and is prevented by seeing that they involve

their patients in all medical decisions regarding their well-being.

Policies Implemented Addressing High-Risk Areas

The risk manager highlighted that the policies incorporated by the health facility to

handle high-risk patients include incorporating a high-risk control initiative that elaborates on

how to identify high-risk chances of accidents. These possibilities include a slippery floor,

lack of guard rails, and unassisted walking of frail and old patients (WHO, 2021). Another

law incorporated is following HIPPA guidelines that explain that practitioners should work

towards ensuring patient safety by regularly attending to the patient's needs through checkups

to reduce their vulnerability to falls (Schwan, 2022).

Challenges Faced

Considering a facility that details patients ailing from chronic illnesses, most

challenges faced are difficulty moving around due to the need to attend to personal wants or

to kill loneliness (Zhang et al., 2019). Therefore, the risk manager highlighted that some of

these issues that the organization encounters in handling and controlling risks include

managing these populations since some of them have mental challenges, meaning they are

unable to ask for help. Also, loss of sensory ability is a challenge. As mentioned earlier, some

patients are critically ill, and some are old. This means some are frail, and some can't hear or

see. Therefore, they are very likely to bump into objects and fall, which could result in

adverse health results.

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Monitoring, Evaluating, and Maintaining Compliance

To track, assess and maintain compliance with the risk management initiatives, the

risk manager highlighted that the organization incorporated various techniques such as

auditing and staff training. The auditing approach is practiced in two phases, including

regular reviews for opinions from visitors and patients and benchmarking the present risk

control initiative alongside the stipulated principles. On the other hand, under staff training,

staff members are regularly educated on how they can comply with the enterprise

incorporated.

Assessment of the Organization's Risk Management Program and Steps to

Improve One Area

Concerning the data drawn from the risk manager, it is elaborate that the risk

management initiative helped improve patient outcomes in the facility, mainly among high-

risk populations like the elderly and chronically ill patients (Zhang et al., 2019). One

remarkable strength of the initiative implemented is the compliance with the patient safety

policies stipulated in the HIPPA guidelines. Despite its effectiveness, the industry had a

limitation. The limitation applied to the training initiative. This program did not utilize efforts

from collaborators such as patients and their loved ones. To correct this, I would suggest that

the facility uses approaches such as creating brochures and pamphlets highlighting the

initiative in place and addressing the need for change. This approach will facilitate the

collaborators to fathom what industry is being utilized to avoid and control risks, thus

including the teams in the initiative implementation.

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References

Schwan, D. (2022). An Ethical Case for Medical Scribes. Cambridge Quarterly of

Healthcare Ethics, 31(1), 95-104.

World Health Organization. (2021). Step safely: strategies for preventing and managing falls

across the life-course.

Zhang, L., Ding, Z., Qiu, L., & Li, A. (2019). Falls and risk factors of falls for urban and

rural community-dwelling older adults in China. BMC geriatrics, 19(1), 1-17.

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Risk Management Interview Questions and Answers

Question one

Hello. How are you? What position do you hold in this healthcare facility?

Answer

Hello. I am the head of the risk management department.

Question two

How crucial is a risk management initiative in a facility?

Answer

A risk management tool is crucial for any healthcare organization to mitigate and

avoid risks that endanger patient safety and prevent the attainment of the facility s targets.

Question three

What risks are common in this facility?

Answer

The most recurring risks in our healthcare facility are patient falls.

Question four

What populations are most vulnerable to these risks?

Answer

The most vulnerable population to hospital falls are the elderly and chronically ill

patients, who form a large population of our patients. This is because most of them are frail.

Question five

Which risk management initiatives tool has the facility utilized?

Answer

The risk management tools that the facility has incorporated focus on risk avoidance

and risk minimization. Under risk prevention, the facility has incorporated techniques like

correcting the make of the floors, abiding slippery floors by adequately cleaning up, and
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installing guard rails on the facility’s walls. Also, approaches such as the use of walking aids

and walking therapy have been incorporated to aid in both risk reduction and risk avoidance.

Question five

How has the facility addressed challenges of vicarious liability, negligence prevention, and

malpractice litigation?

Answer

The facility has addressed all these challenges individually in the risk management

initiative. For instance, under negligence prevention, the facility ensures it conducts regular

employee sensitization that addresses the essence of abiding by the code of conduct required

of them. Secondly, it addresses malpractice litigation by providing documentation of all

facility operations and lastly handles vicarious liability by actively involving patients in the

day-to-day medical operations regarding them.

Question six

What policies have been put in place in the high-risk sections of the facility?

Answer

As mentioned earlier, the high-risk populations in our facility are the elderly and

chronically ill patients. Therefore, policies incorporated include the incorporation of high-risk

management initiatives that helps identify possibilities of occurrence of risks.

Question seven

What challenges did the facility face during the implementation??

Answer

As mentioned, the facility primarily deals with chronically ill patients and the elderly.

Therefore, the majority of the challenges that we encounter include difficulty moving around

due to the need to attend to personal wants or to kill loneliness. Therefore, some of these

issues that the organization faces in handling and controlling risks include managing these
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populations since some have mental challenges, meaning they cannot ask for help. Also, loss

of sensory ability is a challenge. As mentioned earlier, some patients are critically ill, and

some are old. This means some are frail, and some can’t hear or see. Therefore, they are very

likely to bump into objects and fall, which could result in adverse health results.

Question eight

How did the facility conduct monitoring, evaluation, and compliance assurance?

Answer

The facility conducted the named above in two phases. One, they conducted an audit

that helped them acquire the opinions of visitors and patients on the implemented initiative.

Two, we worked on an employee training forum that elaborated on the need for change and

the essence of the incorporated initiative.

Question nine

What is one strength and one weakness of the initiative, and what would you recommend?

Answer

The risk management initiative out in place has a strength in that it abides by all the

regulatory policies put in place, more the HIPPA guidelines of patient safety. However, the

initiative failed to ensure the active involvement of patients and their loved ones in

actualizing this initiative. Hence, I would recommend that the facility utilize printouts, for

example,, brochures that would help communicate the initiative that has been incorporated

and how it works.