Joint Commission Backs TakeCHARGE Campaign for Health Safety Awareness — Pulse CPSEA

WANTAGH, N.Y. – Nov. 20, 2020 – PRLog — ‘The nation’s leading healthcare accreditation organization, The Joint Commission, has taken the unusual step of endorsing the TakeCHARGE Campaign, a new public awareness program from Pulse Center for Patient Safety Education & Advocacy.

In addition to adapting the campaign’s messages for its own sizeable staff, The Joint Commission has added a page (https://www.jointcommission.org/resources/for-consumers/take-charge/) (https://www.jointcommission.org/resources/for-consumers/take-charge/) promoting the campaign, to the “Resources for Consumers” section of its website. It reprises the campaign’s messages and information, and links to the TakeCHARGE website (https://www.takecharge.care/) (https://www.takecharge.care).

“It is unprecedented for the Joint Commission to support a particular independent health education campaign,” says Pulse President Ilene Corina. “It’s a testament to the planning and hard work that the TakeCHARGE team put in over the first eight months of 2020, and we are very gratified that such a prestigious organization has lent us its approval in this way.”

“One of the best ways to take care of your health is by taking an active role in your health care decisions,” according to Lynn Dragisic, Executive Vice President, Support Operations and Chief of Staff at The Joint Commission. “The TakeCHARGE Campaign encourages people to become informed and active participants of their own health. The Joint Commission fully supports the tenets of the campaign and was pleased to promote the five steps involved in ‘taking charge’.  We’re all patients at some point or have loved ones who are patients, and following these steps can result in informed decision-making and effective advocacy. We were happy to share these important tools and information with our staff and with the public.”

The TakeCHARGE Campaign’s goal is to persuade everyone to take “5 Steps to Safer Health Care” (https://www.takecharge.care/the-5-steps.html) — basic ways people can better prepare for the inevitable day when they will need medical care. The 5 Steps are:

1.     Complete your Advance Directives, specifying your wishes regarding medical treatment in the event you are unable to communicate

2.     Create and maintain a personal medical history and medications list

3.     Before your next medical appointment, write a list of questions for the doctor

4.     Make sure all medical providers help prevent infection by washing their hands

5.     Use a patient advocate, and be an advocate for others

Studies have shown that people who have taken these steps are more likely to get the desired outcomes from their care.

“The TakeCHARGE Campaign asked everyone to take one of these Steps each month between April and August, 2020” says Corina. “The fact that this period saw the gravest rise in Covid-19 cases and deaths only highlights the importance of preparing ahead in this way.”

It also meant that almost all the Campaign’s outreach was via websites, Zoom meetings, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and LinkedIn. Links to the social media platforms are on the TakeCHARGE website. The formal stage of the 2020 campaign has ended, and will resume in 2021. Meanwhile, it continues to train “Ambassadors” who will spread the word to their communities.