The Joint Commission: National Patient Safety Goals for Medicare-based Long-Term Care The Joint Commission is a nonprofit organization that focuses on improving the healthcare system. They do this by regulating and evaluating healthcare organizations, helping them improve and provide more effective and safe care (The Joint Commission, 2012). National patient safety goals are ways the Joint Commission strives to improve the way health care is delivered (The Joint Commission, 2012). As of January 1, 2012, the Joint Commission identified new ways to improve the care of Medicare-based long-term care facilities and provided safety standards to follow. To better understand the impact these regulations have on healthcare, it is necessary to identify and describe the purpose of each regulation and highlight the impact it may have among geriatric patients in particular. Safety Goals and Objectives• Correctly identify patients when providing care: Nurses should have two resident identifiers when attempting to care for a patient for the first time and thereafter, one identifier is acceptable. Identifiers such as room number or location are not acceptable. To ensure this is done correctly, nurses should request two identifiers in situations such as collecting specimens, when providing treatments, or when collecting blood for clinical testing (containers should be labeled in front of the patient). The aim of this guideline is to ensure that patients have been correctly identified and that they receive the right treatments and medications (The Joint Commission, 2012).• Use medications safelyReduce harm associated with anticoagulant therapy: this objective and.. .. .. half of the document ......m, and taking these basic precautions will take your healthcare to the next level. References Jones, D., & Whitaker, T. (2011). Preventing falls in the elderly: evaluation and interventions. Nursing Standard, 25(52), 50-55.Jr, K.R., & Barber, C.E. (2011, August 29). Preventing falls in the elderly. Retrieved from http://www.ext.colostate.edu/pubs/consumer/10242.htmlPeel, N.M., Travers, C., Bell, R.R., & Smith, K. (2010). Evaluation of a health care delivery intervention to promote fall prevention in older adults across the care continuum. Journal of Evaluation in Clinical Practice, 16(6), 1254-1261. doi:10.1111/j.1365-2753.2009.01307.xThe Joint Commission. (2012, January 1). National patient safety goals: Medicare-based long-term care. Retrieved from http://www.jointcommission.org/assets/1/6/NPSG_Chapter_Jan2012_LT2.pdf