Suicides in top 5 most reported sentinel events in 2019

Two types of suicide, inpatient and offsite, were among the top five most frequently reported sentinel events in the first six months of 2019. The Joint Commission introduced suicide in the emergency department, inpatient suicide and suicide offsite within 72 hours of hospitalization, when the organization updated its list of sentinel events last fall. Unintended retention of a foreign body was the most frequently reported event. The Joint Commission’s Sentinel Event Policy is intended to help institutions analyze patient safety events and institute corrective actions to prevent future harm. Fewer than 2% of all sentinel events are reported to the Joint Commission, which cautions that these data cannot be used to draw conclusions about an event’s frequency. (Joint Commission Online story, 8/14/19)