Which three indicators are commonly tracked to monitor patient safety and care quality in nursing?

• A. Falls rate, CLABSI rate, CAUTI rate
• B. Patient satisfaction score, medication cost, length of stay
• C. Nurse turnover, supply waste, overtime hours
• D. Readmission rate, ambulance wait time, wait list

Answer: (A)

The main concept here is patient safety and infection prevention as reflected by observable harm events that nursing teams can prevent. Falls, central line-associated bloodstream infections (CLABSI), and catheter-associated urinary tract infections (CAUTI) are classic safety indicators because they capture distinct, preventable risks that directly relate to nursing care practices.

Falls rate shows how often patients experience falls, pointing to the effectiveness of fall risk assessments, supervision, mobility support, and environmental safety. Reducing falls typically involves proactive rounding, safe patient movement plans, proper use of alarms, and ensuring assistive devices are available and used.

CLABSI rate tracks bloodstream infections linked to central venous lines, which hinge on sterile insertion, meticulous line maintenance, and timely removal when a line is no longer needed. When these practices are strong—hand hygiene, proper dressing changes, hub scrubbing, and daily review of line necessity—the infection rate tends to fall.

CAUTI rate measures infections tied to urinary catheters, driven by appropriate catheter use, aseptic insertion, maintaining closed drainage systems, and removing catheters as soon as they’re no longer needed. Emphasizing indications for catheter use and prompt removal helps lower these infections.

These indicators are commonly tracked together because they cover different safety domains—injury prevention and device-associated infections—and they are actionable with clear nursing interventions. While other metrics like patient satisfaction, length of stay, or staffing-related measures matter for overall quality, they aren’t as direct a reflection of patient safety events and infection control as these three.