PRC filed at Rockyview Hospital prompts clearer diagnoses and appropriate reception in surgical units for patients

A Professional Responsibility Concern filed by members of United Nurses of Alberta Local 121 at the Rockyview Hospital in Calgary has resulted in clearer diagnoses being provided for patients who have experienced miscarriages when they are received in the hospital’s surgical units.

In some cases, the need for induction to deliver the fetus was not made clear regarding women admitted to the hospital with a diagnosis of “miscarriage” or “incomplete miscarriage.” In addition, some surgical units did not have the knowledge, equipment or skill for this procedure and there was a lack of clear policy about which surgical units such patients should be admitted to.

As a result of the PRC submitted by Local 121 an improved admission policy for such patients and clearer diagnostic language to ensure appropriate admission was developed by management and communicated to affected RNs, LPNs, charge nurses and unit clerks.

Formal debriefings for nurses were offered as a direct result of the Local’s PRC, said Local Vice-President and PRC Committee Co-Chair YooRee Keller. At the local’s July joint Occupational Health and Safety Committee meeting with hospital management, the local reminded employer representatives of the need to provide such debriefings without waiting for staff to request them.