Assignment 3: The Wall of Silence Scholarly Paper

For this course, The Wall of Silence by Gibson and Singh (2003) will be read. Please read the

book and based upon the content, and additional sources complete the assignment as described.

This assignment will provide the approach for connecting The Wall of Silence, the course

content, and personal and professional experiences. A scholarly paper that addresses all four

sections of the book will be completed. Submit the entry by the posted due date. The entry

requires the use of APA (see rubric). There is no length requirement for the entry however, to

earn all potential points each student must

a) have read the book

b) applied the course material as necessary as demonstrated through citing/referencing of

course materials, and

c) addressed all the assignment criteria. The book should be cited and included on the

reference page with other necessary sources as evidence of understanding the course material

and content.

Based upon Gibson and Singh Part 1 and 2:

Gibson and Singh provided alarming statistics based upon the IOM’s 1999 report of 100,000

deaths per year due to medical errors. According to Gibson and Singh, this translates to 275

deaths due to medical errors every day. Based on the number of deaths known, and considering

the potential number for unaccounted deaths, reflect on the book and address the following:

1.Part 1 of Gibson and Singh details 10 patient-family accounts and their experience with

medical error. Select one of the cases and discuss the following areas:

a. Summarize and provide an overview of the selected case.

b. Describe the type of error that occurred in the case (examples include: medication errors,

misdiagnosis, a delay in treatment, cross contamination, failure to take the necessary precautions,

surgical errors, unnecessary treatment, missed warning signs, etc.).

c. Discuss the underlying cause of the selected medical error that occurred in the selected case.

d. Compare one or more quality or safety initiative that now exists that could have prevented

the error? (Cite the source where the initiative, guideline or protocol was found).

3. Discuss the role of nurses in developing a culture of safety interdependent upon a professional

code of ethics.

a. Explain some of the reasons nurses fail to report errors and describe potential consequences

to the nurse, patient, facility, and system associated with failure to report.

b. Discuss some of the reasons that have resulted in the nursing shortage and the subsequent

effects on patient safety, quality of care, and the potential for errors in the health care system.

c. Explain the importance of quality improvement as the process pertains to improving the

quality and safety of patient

care.

4. Support entries with quotations from the book as needed and with additional literature and

sources from the course and the

library.

Based upon Gibson and Singh Part 3 and 4

The culture of cover-up is contradictory to our professional code of ethics. Gibson and Singh

provided a detailed overview of why medical errors occur and they provided rationales behind

the culture of cover-up in the health care environment. They described potential methods of

regulation and reporting to better inform patients and consumers about their health care

providers. Gibson and Singh also devoted an entire chapter to the use of technology making

health care safer. Consider the importance of developing competency in nursing informatics and

technology in healthcare. How might these systems impact nursing practice now and in the

future?

5. Describe the meaning of the ‘culture of coverup’ and the consequences to patients, families,

the public, and healthcare

facilities.

6. Explain how healthcare consumers can access and investigate potential providers or facilities

before making selections about health care providers and facilities.

7. Explain the benefit(s) for healthcare organizations that initiate voluntary reporting systems

for internal use and how the information and data collected can be utilized for quality

improvement project(s) to continually improve the safety of health care provided to patients?

8. Describe the need for healthcare providers to use information and technology to

communicate, manage knowledge, mitigate error, and support decision-making? How does

technology support safety at health care facilities?

9. Gibson and Singh compared the current health care system to less flawed, safer industries,

like aviation. Compare and contrast safety and quality in health care when compared to the

aviation industry?

10. Support entries with quotations from the book as needed and with literature and sources from

the course and the library (see requirements in # 15)

11. The scholarly paper should be in narrative format, 5 to 7 pages excluding the title and

reference page.

12. Include an introductory paragraph, purpose statement, and a conclusion.

13. Include level 1 and 2 headings to organize the paper.

4. Write the paper in third person, not first person (meaning do not use ‘we’ or ‘I’) and in a

scholarly manner. To clarify: I, we, you, me, our may not be used. In addition, describing

yourself as the researcher or the author should not be used.

15. Include a minimum of 4 professional peer-reviewed scholarly journal references to support

the paper (review in Ulrich Periodical Directory) and be less than five (5) years old.

16. APA format is required (attention to spelling/grammar, a title page, a reference page, and intext

citations).

17. Submit the assignment to Turnitin prior to the final submission, review the originality report,

and make any needed changes