Sentinel Event Categories

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Sentinel Event Categories

Sentinel Events are sentinels--they function as guards or watchkeepers. They indicate serious situations that require immediate attention:

  • Patient death
  • Paralysis
  • Coma
  • Permanent loss of function
  • Any procedure on the wrong patient, the wrong side of the body, or the wrong organ
  • Hemolytic transfusion reaction involving major blood group incompatibility