Fondazione Arturo Pinna Pintor SIQuAS VRQ
From perceived quality to perception of medical error - For an integrated methodology to detect medical errors
Saturday October 15, 2005
Arturo Pinna Pintor Foundation Hall
Via Vespucci 61 – Torino, Italy

The patient’s role in patient safety

Rachel Reeves

Senior Research Associate - Picker Institute Europe


Patient safety is of primary importance to patients, but their role in ensuring safe care is often minimised or over-looked by health professionals.  The comparisons that are often made between patient safety and airline safety have useful applications but they do not take sufficient account of fundamental differences in the nature of health care provision and air travel.  Patients who are actively involved in planning their care and who understand their treatment have better chances than those who do not.  On the other hand, passenger involvement enhances does not enhance airline safety.
 
This paper presents the results of patient feedback research using discussion groups and postal surveys, focussing on those aspects of care that are essential to patient safety.   Our research on general inpatient care, stroke care, cardiac care, and in non-hospital settings demonstrates that care often fails to make use of patients’ contributions to safety.  We also show that most patients want to be involved in their care and many patients want a greater role.  We discuss the barriers to involving patients in the delivery of safe care.  


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