Integrating national patient safety initiatives into prelicensure clinical learning.

The integration of patient safety initiatives into the nursing curriculum is critical to preparing nursing students for delivering safe and high-quality patient care (QSEN Institute, n.d.). The focus of patient safety is to “minimize the risk of harm to patients and providers through both systems effectiveness and individualized performance” (QSEN Institute, n.d.). Although patient safety has always been inherent in nursing practice, guidelines from the American Association of Colleges of Nursing (2008), the QSEN Institute (n.d.), and The Joint Commission (n.d.) have increased the emphasis on patient safety in nursing education and practice. Nursing faculty across the country are challenged to incorporate the application of patient safety principles into clinical education. Encouraging novice nursing students to apply national patient safety standards, critical thinking, and nursing care plans helps to provide them with the foundation necessary to deliver safe patient care and improve patient outcomes (Armstrong & Barton, 2013; Preheim, Armstrong, & Barton, 2009).