New Tool Aims to Educate Friends, Family, and Other Patient Advocates

​A new tool from the Pulse Center for Patient Safety Education and Advocacy aims to help family members, friends, and other patient advocates ask necessary questions and support those being treated in hospitals. The Patient Assistant Checklist includes a list of supplies that an advocate should bring to the hospital, topics to discuss with the patient before arrival, and advice on what to do at bedside, what notes to take when the doctor arrives, steps to take after the doctor leaves, and precautions to reduce the risk of infections or falls. When patients bring someone with them to the hospital it can cut down on medical errors, according to experts quoted in a press release about the tool. However, what these advocates are supposed to do once they arrive at the hospitals is not always conveyed. The tool advises patient advocates to bring several items with them, including antibacterial wipes and pen and paper to take notes.