Office of Quality and Patient Safety

Medical professionals can change their behavior: study

Disrespectful and unsafe behavior by physicians and advanced practice medical professionals can undermine health care teams, but research shows that often a simple conversation to make an individual aware of their action can promote self-reflection and change.

Initiative seeks to encourage use of advance directives

Vanderbilt University Medical Center is encouraging faculty and staff to answer this question: If you became incapable of making health care decisions for yourself because of injury or illness, would your family or health care provider know your wishes for health care?

Surgical Pathology takes Pioneer Program to heart

Surgical pathologists are often asked to evaluate tissue samples mid-procedure. These intraoperative consultations entail rapid processing and microscopic evaluation to distinguish diseased tissue from healthy tissue, thus helping guide the surgeon’s hands.