Macie Merritt is the Fall Champion representative for South 6. Macie has made several presentations during the Fall Committee regarding some of the patient falls which occurred on South 6. Macie attended the Fall Council Meeting in June when the council representatives were informed that action needed to be taken to implement all elements of the safety protocol. Knowing the patient population of South 6 where the majority of the patients are classified as a fall risk, Macie began to focus on the many interventions that must be implemented. Macie discussed her concerns with the S6 staff. Everyone understood there would need to be a cultural change to truly reduce the fall rate.
Macie began to work on a Fall Risk Checklist that would help staff identify all of the elements of the fall prevention. Macie presented her form to the Staff Nurse Professional Practice Council and the Fall Council. She met with the HC4 staff and made serval revisions to the form receiving input from nursing units and multiple councils. Macie's ultimate goal is to keep patients safe from fall or injury and assist the nursing staff with reminders of the steps of the Safety Program which should be implemented or assessed. The Fall Risk Checklist was approved and was implemented 11/1/18 hospital-wide.
Macie's commitment to patient care has continued to grow. A patient's daughter stated, "Macie has a quiet demeanor while providing compassion and care to my daughter." A Texas Tech nursing student wrote a Hero card stating, "Thank you for being my awesome teacher and being patient with me. You are an amazing nurse, and I enjoyed being able to learn from you!"
Macie is an awesome nurse and is concerned about patient safety. She followed up on a concern for patient safety by developing a tool to assist the nursing staff and prevent patient falls.