Patient Safety: Preventing Patient Harm and Building Capacity for Patient Safety

Abstract

Patient safety is a global public health concern. It is a health care discipline with ever evolving advancement and complexity resulting in consequential rise in patient harm. Since the pandemic, patient safety has been threatened even more by laying bare the inadequacies of health systems. Many unsafe care practices, risks, and errors contribute to patient harm and overall economic burden. These include medical, diagnostic, and radiation errors, healthcare associated infections, unsafe surgical procedures and transfusion practices, sepsis, venous thromboembolism, and falls. Although patient safety has become an integral part of the healthcare delivery model and resources have been dedicated towards it, much still needs to be achieved. An attitude of inclusivity for all care teams and anyone in contact with the patient, including the patients themselves, would enhance patient safety. Incorporating this attitude from educational infancy will allow for better identification of medical errors and inculcate critical analysis of process improvement. Implementing the ‘Just Culture’ by health care organizations can build the infrastructure to eliminate avoidable harm. To reduce avoidable harm and improve safety, a constant flow of information and knowledge should be available to mitigate the risks. Lastly, proper communication and effective leadership can play an imperative role to engage stakeholders and reduce harm.

Factors to improve the quality of comprehensive emergency obstetric and newborn care

“…Moreover, patient safety is a global health priority because it has become the most important indicator in the health care system. The better service quality, the lower medical errors that can occur; thus, the mortality cases in the health facility will be lower [13]. This is in line with the aim of the CEmONC services implementation in the hospital.…”

Predictors of Nursing Performance for Patient Safety among Nurses in Regional Hospitals: A Cross-sectional Study

“…4 Unsafe performance or care practices, risks, and errors in the performance of care processes cause patients harm, create a high-cost burden, and demonstrate low quality of care in healthcare organizations. 5 In Thailand, data from the National Reporting and Learning System (NRLS) reveal a steady rise in the recorded occurrences of patient safety issues. The reported cases have increased from 114,669 in 2018 to 733,689 in 2021, indicating an annual growth rate of 5.40%.…”

Perception of Health Teams on the Implementation of Strategies to Decrease Nursing Errors and Enhance Patient Safety

“…8 Most patient safety initiatives have centered on preventing medication errors, however, medical equipment is also a significant source of injury and death. 9 Medical schools typically do not provide education on device-and equipment-related errors; hence, further research is needed to understand the underlying causes and mechanisms of such incidents. 10 Hospitals report the most patient falls.…”