BWH’s inpatient S.A.F.E. Response program—which stands for Spot a threat, Assess the risk, Formulate a safe clinical response and Evaluate the outcome—is an evidence-based inpatient clinical response for preventing, managing, de-escalating and responding to events. The scope of this work includes any interaction with a patient or visitor in which a BWH staff member experiences a threat to his or her personal safety or the safety of another employee. To build upon this program, ambulatory staff are working to adapt and implement the workplace safety program in BWH’s outpatient settings.

For the past few months, S.A.F.E. Response Ambulatory chairs Cindy Peterson, executive director of the Brigham and Women’s/Mass General Health Care Center and Brigham and Women’s Health Care Center at 850 Boylston St.; Danika Medina, MPA, RN, ambulatory nurse director; and Sonali Desai, MD, MPH, medical director of Ambulatory Patient Safety, have worked to define the Ambulatory S.A.F.E. approach in charge and scope, with the help of Andrea Shellman, MHSA, senior patient safety consultant in the Department of Quality and Safety.

The next step is to establish a steering committee. More information will be shared as development of the approach progresses.