Improved safety culture and teamwork climate are associated with decreases in patient harm and hospital mortality across a hospital system

Source:  Journal of Patient Safety

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Date of publication: January 2016

Publication type:  Journal article

In a nutshell:  Improved safety and teamwork culture has been associated with decreased patient harm within specific units in hospitals or hospital groups. Most studies have focused on a specific harm type. This study’s objective was to document such an association across an entire hospital system and across multiple harm types.

Length of publication:  Unspecified

Some important notes:  Please contact your local NHS Library for the full text of the article. Follow this link to find your local NHS Library

Can patient safety incident reports be used to compare hospital safety? Results from a quantitative analysis of the English National Reporting and Learning System data

Source:  PLOS One

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Date of publication:  December 2015

Publication type:  Journal article

In a nutshell: The National Reporting and Learning System (NRLS) collects reports about patient safety incidents in England. Government regulators use NRLS data to assess the safety of hospitals. This study aims to examine whether annual hospital incident reporting rates can be used as a surrogate indicator of individual hospital safety. Secondly assesses which hospital characteristics are correlated with high incident reporting rates and whether a high reporting hospital is safer than those lower reporting hospitals. Finally, it assesses which health-care professionals report more incidents of patient harm, which report more near miss incidents and what hospital factors encourage reporting. These findings may suggest methods for increasing the utility of reporting systems.

Length of publication:   8 pages

Improving diagnosis in health care: the next imperative for patient safety

Source:  The New England Journal of Medicine 373/26 pp.2493-2495

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Date of publication:  December 2015

Publication type:  Journal article

In a nutshell:  This is a commentary of the U.S. report Improving Diagnosis in Health Care that acknowledges the need to address diagnostic error as an urgent patient safety issue.  Summarising the goals from the report, this commentary details how the recommendations can lead to enhanced diagnostic safety and reduced patient harm. The authors also acknowledge potential challenges to implementing the systems and process changes described.

Length of publication:   2 pages

Some important notes:  Please contact your local NHS Library for the full text of the article. Follow this link to find your local NHS Library

Prevention and control of healthcare-associated infections overview

Source:  NICE

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Date of publication: August 2015

Publication type:  NICE Pathway

In a nutshell:  The NICE Pathway on the Prevention and control of healthcare-associated infections overview was updated on 17 August 2015 to include the NICE pathway on antimicrobial stewardship.

Length of Publication:  7 pages

Patient safety: threats and solutions

Source:  Nursing Standard vol/iss 27/44 pp. 48-55

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Date of publication:  July 2013

Publication type:  Journal article

In a nutshell:  The issues surrounding patient safety are explored in this article, including the language associated with harm and error. The authors discuss the types of patient safety incidents that can occur and they provide insights into why these incidents can occur and explain some of the underlying factors. Preventive strategies and the role of patients and family members in enhancing safety are discussed.

Length of Publication:  8 pages

Some important notes:  Please contact your local NHS Library for the full text of the article. Follow this link to find your local NHS Library.

Medication discrepancies at transitions in pediatrics: a review of the literature

Source:  Pediatric Drugs vol/iss 15/3, pp. 203-215

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Date of publication:  June 2013

Publication type:  Journal article

In a nutshell:  Many countries, including the UK, have incorporated medication reconciliation as an important theme for national patient safety initiatives and objectives. The pediatric population are excluded from UK national guidance. This review aimed to discover the occurrence of medication discrepancies in the pediatric population. Small scale studies show that medication discrepancies occur at all transitions of care in children. To investigate and establish how implementing medication reconciliation can reduce discrepancies and prevent potential harm to patients, further research is needed.

Length of Publication:  13 pages

Some important notes:  Please contact your local NHS Library for the full text of the article. Follow this link to find your local NHS Library.

The role of theory in research to develop and evaluate the implementation of patient safety practices

Source: BMJ Quality & Safety Volume 20

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Date of publication: 11 February 2011

Publication type: Article

In a nutshell: This article suggests that theory should be added to interventions as they can provide a way of predicting or mitigating the effects of Patient Safety Practices (PSPs).  It further suggests that adding the theoretical basis to the PSPs will enable learning in different contexts.

Length of publication: 6 pages

Some important information:  This article is available in full text to all NHS Staff using Athens, for more information about accessing full text fllow this link to find your local NHS Library.  Follow this link to find your local NHS Library.