Organizations promote safety culture and teamwork as 2 defenses to reduce risks of adverse events. In one of our lead articles in this issue, researchers used the Safety Attitudes Questionnaire, to measure interprofessional staff perceptions of safety and teamwork climate, and a retrospective, modified Global Trigger Tool chart review, to measure unit-level patient outcomes. Safety climate and teamwork did not have a significant relationship with the frequency of adverse events identified by the Global Trigger Tool. The Quality Expert Panel of the American Academy of Nursing examined current issues with quality measures across 4 stakeholder groups: developers, regulators/endorsers, data collectors, and consumer advocates. They report their findings, which have implications for policymakers, administrators, health care professionals, and consumers, in this issue. Anthony et al developed an innovative approach to rethinking bedside handoff, transitioning from a prescriptive nurse-centered interaction to a patient-centered partnership using principles of complex adaptive systems, simple rules, and partnerships. Readers who are involved in QI will be interested in a number of articles in this issue. An interdisciplinary team developed and implemented a systematic process, using a Plan-Do-Study-Act method, to improve oropharyngeal dysphagia screening and reduce aspiration pneumonia rates. Their QI initiative led to increased use of the screening protocol and timely initiation of speech consultations, and reduced aspiration pneumonia rates. Malec et al improved their interdisciplinary bedside rounds through an enhanced, structured process called the Care Team Visit. If restraint use is still high on your unit, read the article by Hall et al. They implemented an evidence-based restraint management bundle in ICU and found that the proportion of patients restrained decreased significantly following implementation. These are a few of the must-read articles in this issue.
Marilyn H. Oermann, Editor-in-Chief
