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The Utility and Effectiveness of 15-minute Checks in Inpatient Settings
Geetha Jayaram1, Hilary Sporney, Pamela Perticone
1Dr. Jayaram is Associate Professor, Departments of Psychiatry and Health Policy and Management.
Abstract:
Implementing harm reduction is among the administrative tasks used for maintaining a safe unit for psychiatric in-patients. Such harm may be potentially caused by patients themselves or others. Included in nursing procedures implemented for observing suicidal patients is the practice of 15-minute checks. In reviewing the standard forms used for such procedures in several major hospitals across the United States, we noticed a wide variation in the format and use of 15-minute checks, as well as poor guidelines for their termination. We recommend that the observation practice of 15-minute checks be eliminated from the repertoire of nursing protocols for suicidal patients who are assessed to be at imminent risk for self harm on inpatient units.
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