Tom Utecht, M.D., is responsible for maintaining high quality of care and patient safety at all Community’s hospitals. Dr. Utecht is an experienced emergency medicine physician and a faculty member for the UCSF Fresno Emergency Medicine Residency Program.
"He’s making a list,
Checking it twice…."
Christmas seems like a long time ago, but for some reason the above line from "Santa Claus is Coming to Town" has stayed with me. The connection to healthcare? The checking it twice part. This simple layer of redundancy that is used in many other industries (for you carpenters out there – "measure twice, cut once") is incredibly important for us in healthcare. Whether you are a phlebotomist checking two identifiers prior to sticking the patient or a nurse reading back a doctor’s telephone orders – this checking it twice piece takes a little more time but averts many medical errors. After all, if Santa takes the extra step – shouldn’t we?
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About tutecht
Tom Utecht, M.D., is responsible for maintaining high quality of care and patient safety at all Community’s hospitals. Dr. Utecht is an experienced emergency medicine physician and a faculty member for the UCSF Fresno Emergency Medicine Residency Program.