What Does ARCC Stand For? Facility Overview and FAQ
A surgical procedure is performed on the wrong site. The sterile field is compromised, risking contamination during an invasive procedure. These are examples of clinical care errors that shouldn’t happen, but unfortunately do. To avoid these medical mistakes and keep patients safe, healthcare team members are learning about the ARCC safety acronym. What does ARCC stand for? Ask, Request, Concern, and Chain of Command.
To help you improve patient outcomes and empower your healthcare team, we’ll discuss the ARCC error prevention tool and answer some frequently asked questions.
What’s the Point of One More Acronym?
Healthcare is known for its many acronyms, from HR (heart rate) to SBAR (situation, background, assessment, recommendation). You’d be right to question how one more is helpful — especially when thinking about patient safety — if you’re prompted to ask, What does ARCC stand for?
learning this new acronym means initiating a crucial conversation about promoting a culture of safety. Medical errors and adverse patient events often occur due to breakdowns in communication. Hierarchical staffing structures and perceived power imbalances can further contribute to fear of reprisal and increased hesitance around voicing concerns. To combat this dynamic, healthcare leaders are turning to one more acronym with a whole lot of meaning: ARCC — speaking up for safety.
How Does the Tool Work?
By using ARCC, medical errors and adverse events can be avoided through the use of nonthreatening, professional language. It works by guiding team members to follow a set of communication steps when they’re worried that best practices aren’t being followed, or an error is about to occur.
| Ask | The worried healthcare worker should voice their question. | “Did you mean to designate that leg as the surgical site?” |
| Request | If the question didn’t provoke a change, request the change. | “Can we please reread the surgical order and verify it’s the right leg?” |
| Concern | If the concern hasn’t been acknowledged, don’t give up, voice it directly. | “I’m worried we’re preparing to operate on the wrong limb.” |
| Chain of Command | When all other steps have failed at producing a change, escalate the issue up the chain of command. | “I don’t feel comfortable proceeding, I need to talk with my team lead.” |
As with any communication tool, tone of voice and delivery are key for ensuring effectiveness. For instance, yelling doesn’t encourage professionalism and collaboration like an even-toned, mindfully worded concern.
The ARCC Error Prevention Tool: FAQ
Let’s continue to answer some FAQs that go beyond, What does ARCC stand for in healthcare? to make certain you’re fully prepared to implement ARCC. Safety behaviors in the clinical setting make all the difference, and proper incorporation of this tool has the potential to cut costs and save lives.
Is the ARCC safety tool the same as the ARCC model?
No, they’re two separate approaches with similar goals of improving outcomes.
- The ARCC model stands for advancing research and clinical practice through close collaboration. It’s a model used to facilitate organizational change.
- The ARCC tool is a communication device that safety-oriented models may use to help accomplish intended goals.
How is ARCC different from other tools such as STAR or SBAR?
They’re all examples of tools used to improve care, but they target different aspects of potential care and communication breakdown.
- ARCC is intended to help empower staff to speak up despite perceived power differences to help avoid harm in the patient setting.
- STAR (stop, think, act, review) is a self-check tool that helps healthcare workers avoid skill-based errors by encouraging additional review.
- SBAR is a communication system like ARCC, but intended to help keep communication concise and effective in settings where efficiency is critical.
Which clinicians are its intended users?
This tool is appropriate for anyone participating in clinical care, from clinical nursing assistants to nurses and physicians. It’s meant to encourage communication at every level of healthcare’s hierarchical structure.
What is a nonsurgical example of the tool in use?
Two nurses work together to insert a foley catheter into a patient with urinary retention. The nurse holding the catheter misses on their first try and prepares to reuse the now contaminated catheter for their second attempt. The other nurse has concerns about the risk for infection and decides to speak up using the ARCC tool.
A: “Is there a chance sterility was broken just then?”
Response: “I think it’s still good.”
R: “I think it’d be a good idea to get a new kit and restart the procedure.”
Response: “We don’t have time for that.”
C: “We’re risking a catheter-associated UTI if we go forward.”
Response: “Will you just let me do my job?”
C: “I’m going to call the charge nurse to help us resolve this situation.”
How can facilities help promote the use of ARCC and improve its effectiveness?
ARCC is one of several potential tools that a healthcare facility committed to safety should consider employing. Here are some best practices that can help ensure its incorporation and use.
- Fixate on failures by seeking out news of near misses and errors. When they happen, treat them as an opportunity for learning and growth.
- Encourage participation by celebrating questions and modeling non-punitive responses to whistleblowers and people who speak up about near misses and errors.
- Engage staff members to maintain awareness of situations that may lead to safety issues via frequent rounding, safety huddles, and routine meetings.
- Commit to safety by ensuring staff is trained on safety protocols and tools like ARCC, and integrate error-prevention methods into ongoing education opportunities.
Interested in More Tools for Improving Patient Safety?
Now that you have the answer to the question, “What does ARCC stand for,” you’re better able to prevent avoidable patient harm. For other proven safety methods, get access to IntelyCare’s growing catalog of resources and expert-backed tips, all curated with the intention of benefitting patient and facility outcomes.