Patient safety culture in maternity units: a review

Abstract

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to summarize studies that have examined patient safety culture in maternity units and describe the different purposes, study designs and tools reported in these studies while highlighting gaps in the literature. Design/methodology/approach Peer-reviewed studies, published in English during 1961–2016 across eight electronic databases, were subjected to a narrative literature review. Findings Among 100 articles considered, 28 met the inclusion criteria. The main purposes for studying PSC were: assessing intervention effects on PSC (n=17), and assessing PSC level (n=7). Patient safety culture was mostly assessed quantitatively using validated questionnaires (n=23). The Safety Attitude Questionnaire was the most commonly used questionnaire (n=17). Interventions varied from a single action lasting five weeks to a more comprehensive four year package. The time between baseline and follow-up assessment varied from 6 to 24 months. No study reported measurement or intervention costs, and none incorporated the patient’s voice in assessing PSC. Practical implications Assessing PSC in maternity units is feasible using validated questionnaires. Interventions to enhance PSC have not been rigorously evaluated. Future studies should report PSC measurement costs, adopt more rigorous evaluation designs and find ways to incorporate the patient’s voice. Originality/value This review summarized studies examining PSC in a highly important area and highlighted main limitations that future studies should consider.

Linking Patient Safety Climate With Missed Nursing Care in Labor and Delivery Units: Findings From the LaborRNs Survey

“…Thus, improving handling of medical errors and learning from adverse obstetric events may help to reduce errors of omission-that is, the frequency of missing essential aspects of basic nursing care. Safety strategies such as conducting facility reviews by independent consultants, incorporating perinatal safety nurses, using simulation programs for team work and communication 43,45,58 should be implemented in maternity settings, wherein missed nursing care can be measured as a process indicator. Meanwhile, it is also possible that strategies to reduce missed care-such as staffing improvements-may improve safety climate.…”

“…Safety culture refers to the basic assumptions within an organization that are not necessarily about safety but considered good signs of safety 43,44 . As one of the best-studied subdomains in safety culture, safety climate is conceptualized to represent the prevailing attitudes among healthcare staff in the organization specifically regarding safety 43,44 .…”

Cultura De Segurança Do Paciente Em Maternidades: Uma Revisão Integrativa

“…Porém, dos estudos com equipe multiprofissional, quatro tiveram a taxa de respostas com maioria da equipe de enfermagem, com variação de 62,9% a 85,7% do total de participantes. ( 9,(12)(13)(14)(15)(16)…”

Cultura de segurança em unidade de terapia intensiva materna [Safety culture in a maternal intensive care unit] [Cultura de seguridad en una unidad de cuidados intensivos maternos]

“…Rev enferm UERJ, Rio de Janeiro, 2022; 30:e62230 p. 2 Nesse contexto, surge a Cultura de Segurança do Paciente (CSP), caracterizada por comunicação aberta, trabalho em equipe, reconhecimento da reciprocidade, aprendizado contínuo a partir das notificações/relatos de eventos e primazia da segurança como prioridade em todos os níveis da organização 4 . Ressalta-se que promover a CSP é um passo importante para melhorar a segurança em maternidades e em outros ambientes, pois ela pode servir tanto para diagnóstico situacional, quanto como um instrumento para mensurar os efeitos de intervenções realizadas 5 .…”