Photo By Joseph Schmitt | Course attendees and instructors pose for a photo with their certificates at the end...... read more read more
YOKOSUKA, Japan - Medical professionals from U.S. Naval Hospital Yokosuka and Kameda Medical Center worked together to teach caregivers from on and off base medical facilities a course in Team STEPPS, May 17. STEPPS stands for “Strategies & Tools to Enhance Performance and Patient Safety.”
“As the name implies, it takes a team to ensure patient safety,” said Capt. Mark Turner, USNH Yokosuka commanding officer. “In the past we have given this course to our English speaking staff. This marks the first time that we’ve had a significant number of our Japanese speaking staff go through the course.”
The class was taught at the officers’ club right next to USNH Yokosuka. The briefings and interactive demonstrations focused on encouraging all members of the medical staff, regardless of rank, to work as a team, monitor patient safety, speak up if they notice something wrong, and make corrective actions.
“Team STEPPS was actually developed by an agency within the [Department of Defense] and it teaches us how to create an environment for positive communication, teamwork and increases personal performance,” Cmdr. Annie Case, one of the course instructors from USNH Yokosuka. “It’s all about making sure we are providing the best care possible for the patients.”
At the beginning of the class Case hands each of the attendees a pin in the shape of a puzzle piece.
“I hand them out because I want everyone to know that they each have an important piece of the puzzle, that they have a voice and that we need everyone working together to reach our goal,” said Case.
“It’s important in the military community where, as corpsman, it might be that E-1 that notices something and has to come to the 0-6 or the surgeon and say respectfully “I’ve noticed this situation” or “I found something with the patient.” We need to be able to speak up and address whatever issue we face.”
Most attendees work at the main USNH Yokosuka hospital but a few of the attendees come from other medical institutions.
“We have a few from Atsugi and Zama but we also have three people from Tokyo area medical centers,” said Case. “It’s part of an ongoing partnership and friendship that was started by our previous commanding officer. So, we invited them down to also get this training.”
Makoto Suzuki, director of obstetrics and maternal fetal medicine at Kameda Medical Center, is one of the main instructors for the course.
“Japan and the U.S. are working together to support U.S. service members stationed here but there is a communication gap between the two sets of workers,” said Suzuki. “This course is helping to increase communication not only between the coworkers but also between nations.”
Team STEPPS is just one of the many courses taught through out the year at USNH Yokosuka that helps medical professionals improve their skills. As the attendees and instructors left they could be overheard already preparing for the next class.
| Date Taken: | 05.17.2013 |
| Date Posted: | 06.10.2013 01:25 |
| Story ID: | 108377 |
| Location: | YOKOSUKA, KANAGAWA, JP |
| Web Views: | 99 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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