TY - JOUR
T1 - Assessing managerial patient safety practices that influence adverse events reporting among nurses in the Savannah Region, Ghana
AU - Alhassan, Samson
AU - Kwashie, Atswei Adzo
AU - Paarima, Yennuten
AU - Ansah Ofei, Adelaide Maria
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© The Author(s) 2022.
PY - 2022/10
Y1 - 2022/10
N2 - Introduction: Patient safety is a global concern for both health professionals and the public. Studies show that evaluating patient safety culture can help improve patient safety outcomes. Nursing care strategically places nurses at the centre of patient safety promotion and their proximity to patients makes them the drivers of patient safety. Managerial decisions regarding patient safety impact greatly on patient safety outcomes in the healthcare organization. This study aimed to assess the managerial patient safety practices that influence adverse event reporting in three hospitals in the Savannah Region of Ghana. Methods: A quantitative cross-sectional design was used to collect data from 210 participants in three hospitals. Data were analysed using descriptive, Pearson's correlation and linear regression. Results: It was found that patient safety practices with good positive rating scores were management support (56.6%), managers' expectations (62.8%) and feedback about errors (56.2%). Areas with weak patient safety practices were staffing levels (42.4%), open communication (40.2%) and non-punitive response to errors (36.7%). Again, nurses' attitude towards adverse events reporting was generally low (37.3%). Managerial patient safety practices that had significant associations with adverse events reporting were management support (r =.18, p <.001), open communication (r =.19, p <.001), non-punitive to errors (r =.21, p <.001) and feedback about errors (r =.37, p <.001). Again, the significant predictors of adverse events reporting were feedback about errors (β =.36, p <.001) and non-punitive response to errors (β =.21, p <.01). Conclusion: Nurses perceived patient safety culture in their units to be good. Although nurses' attitude towards adverse events reporting was low, the significant predictors of adverse events reporting were feedback about errors and non-punitive response to errors. Therefore, healthcare managers should continually strengthen patient safety to ensure optimal care outcomes. Implications for nursing practice: Feedback on errors and non-punitive response to errors had a great influence on adverse events reporting, managerial failure to provide feedback and a non-punitive work environment could result in under-reporting of adverse events. This can be a major threat to patient safety; hence clinical practice should be aware of this and put in strategies to appropriately address them.
AB - Introduction: Patient safety is a global concern for both health professionals and the public. Studies show that evaluating patient safety culture can help improve patient safety outcomes. Nursing care strategically places nurses at the centre of patient safety promotion and their proximity to patients makes them the drivers of patient safety. Managerial decisions regarding patient safety impact greatly on patient safety outcomes in the healthcare organization. This study aimed to assess the managerial patient safety practices that influence adverse event reporting in three hospitals in the Savannah Region of Ghana. Methods: A quantitative cross-sectional design was used to collect data from 210 participants in three hospitals. Data were analysed using descriptive, Pearson's correlation and linear regression. Results: It was found that patient safety practices with good positive rating scores were management support (56.6%), managers' expectations (62.8%) and feedback about errors (56.2%). Areas with weak patient safety practices were staffing levels (42.4%), open communication (40.2%) and non-punitive response to errors (36.7%). Again, nurses' attitude towards adverse events reporting was generally low (37.3%). Managerial patient safety practices that had significant associations with adverse events reporting were management support (r =.18, p <.001), open communication (r =.19, p <.001), non-punitive to errors (r =.21, p <.001) and feedback about errors (r =.37, p <.001). Again, the significant predictors of adverse events reporting were feedback about errors (β =.36, p <.001) and non-punitive response to errors (β =.21, p <.01). Conclusion: Nurses perceived patient safety culture in their units to be good. Although nurses' attitude towards adverse events reporting was low, the significant predictors of adverse events reporting were feedback about errors and non-punitive response to errors. Therefore, healthcare managers should continually strengthen patient safety to ensure optimal care outcomes. Implications for nursing practice: Feedback on errors and non-punitive response to errors had a great influence on adverse events reporting, managerial failure to provide feedback and a non-punitive work environment could result in under-reporting of adverse events. This can be a major threat to patient safety; hence clinical practice should be aware of this and put in strategies to appropriately address them.
KW - Patient safety
KW - adverse events reporting
KW - patient safety culture
KW - patient safety outcomes
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85138362412&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1177/25160435221123465
DO - 10.1177/25160435221123465
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:85138362412
SN - 2516-0435
VL - 27
SP - 218
EP - 228
JO - Journal of Patient Safety and Risk Management
JF - Journal of Patient Safety and Risk Management
IS - 5
ER -