University News

WIU Nursing Students Participate in World Patient Safety Day

September 28, 2026

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MACOMB, IL. — Western Illinois University School of Nursing and Applied Health and Human Performance students participated in a special World Patient Safety Day 2026 activity on Sept. 17.

"I want students to understand that every nurse has a role in improving patient safety. This activity allowed them to take what they have been learning about quality improvement, informatics, and systems thinking and apply it to a realistic situation. Activities like this help students think critically, work as a team, use data, and understand how nurses can improve patient safety," Ashley Frederick, DNP, RN, NE-BC, CPHQ, CPPS, said.

This year's theme was "Safe Care for Life," with a focus on safe care for people living with noncommunicable diseases.

Students worked in teams to investigate a simulated patient safety event, identify contributing system factors using a cause-and-effect diagram, analyze simulated event-report data using a Pareto chart and determine where an improvement team should focus first.

The activity allowed students to apply quality improvement, patient safety, nursing and informatics concepts to a realistic health care scenario while emphasizing systems thinking rather than individual blame.

"This activity helped me see how patient safety issues are often connected to multiple system factors rather than just one individual mistake. It also showed me how tools like cause-and-effect diagrams and Pareto charts can help identify where changes could make the biggest impact on patient safety," Meredith Flynn, a senior Nursing student, said.

For more information on WIU's School of Nursing and Applied Health and Human Performance, visit wiu.edu/Nursing.

Posted By: University Communications (U-Communications@wiu.edu)
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