Speak-Up About Your Care Program: RUA Safety Goals

Speak-Up About Your Care Program
Student's Name
Chamberlain University College of Nursing
NR224: Fundamentals of nursing
Instructor
Due Date
Speak-Up About Your Care Program
Introduction
The "Speak Up About Your Care" brochure was published by the Joint Commission in March 2002 (The Joint Commission, 2019). According to the Joint Commission (2019), the speak-up program focuses on helping patients and their advocates to become involved in their care. It offers patients, their relatives, and caregivers downloadable materials to sensitize on the need for patients' involvement in their medical care and well-being. The key aim of the program is to reach a broad audience, either young or old, and both sick or affiliates of the ill person, through simplified material that is easy to read and comprehend. As a result, the campaign has reached more than 70 countries (The Joint Commission, 2019). It is simplified, and therefore, several individuals, regardless of age or competence, can easily access and read the infographics and watch the animated videos.
Summary of the Speak-Up program
The Speak Up program offers patients and their families a set of materials to enable them to become active in making their health encounters as safe as possible. The topics covered within this campaign include the safe handling of medication, pain management, and safety during and after surgery. The campaign also provides information about the reduction of discriminatory activities in healthcare. The Joint Commission incorporates infographic videos, a topical guide, and a podcast for each thematic package to help patients and their advocates easily comprehend and interpret the material.
Communication
According to Rodrigo‐Rincon et al. (2022), there are several ways to promote communication between patients and caregivers. Using animated videos to be aired on social platforms and creative posters and flyer designs create awareness as it will get engagement from a wide range of audiences (Rodrigo‐Rincon et al., 2022). They also make the target audience's points simple and easy to understand, particularly among patients with prolonged health issues. Moreover, educational resources such as videos and infographics are available to the general public to easily share information related to communication between patients and caregivers to achieve optimal patient safety (NHS, 2019). Therefore, healthcare providers can use them to enforce and implement the speak-up program to ensure patient safety.
Personal Reflection
The words Speak-Up, mean voicing out one's concerns. This topic captured my attention because it defines the essential medical aspects that affect most patients. For instance, most patients are unaware of most surgical procedures' inherent risks. Therefore, the program enlightens patients about the essential facets of an operation before and after surgery. Another reason for my interest in this campaign is that it addresses a larger population regardless of age, reading ability, or ethnic and racial background. Besides, effective communication is always a challenge among patients and their advocates. It is of great interest to have a campaign that enlightens patients, their healthcare providers, families, and relati...