improving safety and quality of care essay

Improving Patient Safety and Quality of Medical Care Expository Essay

Introduction, use of technology, evidence-based medicine, health literacy.

Patient safety is an important aspect of risk management in health care. Improvement of patient safety entails assessment of possible ways that could harm patients, prevention and management of medical risks, and analysis of incidents that harm patients (Leape et al, 2007). In addition, it involves reporting such incidents to management and consequently putting measures in place to ensure that they do not recur.

Improving patient safety is one of the methods used to improve the quality of medical care given to patients. In provision of medical care, patient safety is the most important aspect to consider. For example, during medication, surgery and other medical procedures, health care givers should ensure that the safety of the patient is guaranteed. Medical errors, poor quality medical care, inadequate patient monitoring, and uncoordinated patient care services compromise patient safety (Leape et al, 2007).

How to improve patient safety and quality of care

Several measures can be put in place to ensure patient safety during treatment and hence improve the quality of medical care. These measures include use of technology, use of evidence-based medicine, and improving health literacy for both patients and health care professionals. Improving patient safety and quality of patient care helps in management of risk involved in the health care sector because it minimizes harm and injuries to patients.

A study by RAND Health revealed that if health information technology (HIT) was adopted by the healthcare system of the United States, more than $81 billion would be saved every year (Wong, 2012). Adoption of HIT would help to minimize dangerous healthcare incidents that compromise patient safety and lower the quality of healthcare.

In addition, it would minimize the length of stay of patients in hospitals. Examples of technology advancements that can be used include Electronic Health Record (HER), Computerized Provider Order Entry (CPOE), complete safety medication system, and active RFID platform (Wong, 2012).

EHR is useful in reduction of errors related to drug prescription, laboratory tests, and several medical procedures. In many hospitals, medical errors are caused by failure to embrace technology. Illegible handwritten reports are a common cause of medical errors in areas such as drug prescription, medical tests, and treatment procedures (Wong, 2012).

Electronic patient records contribute highly in improving the safety of patients and quality of medical care because they facilitate efficient storage of patient information. Use of technology helps to improve patient safety by reducing diagnosis errors and improving patient monitoring (Wong, 2012).

Evidence-based medicine is an effective method of improving patient safety and quality of patient care. It combines research findings and results of a patient’s examination by a doctor. The doctor uses the results of research studies to make accurate diagnosis and prescription to minimize chances of harming patients (Leape et al, 2007).

In addition, this medical approach inculcates therapy, rehabilitation, and prevention measures that guarantee the safety of patients. It is effective because it offers healthcare practitioners a chance to use improved treatment methods and guidelines. In addition, it reduces cases of incorrect diagnosis and other medical errors such as overuse of certain medications used during surgeries and minor operations (Leape et al, 2007).

Moreover, it eliminates the risk presented by outdated treatment methods and procedures. These practices improve the safety of patients and the quality of medical care given. The field of evidence-based medicine needs further research in order to develop new treatment methods and procedures as well as tests for diagnosis of diseases.

Heath literacy is an important factor in the process of improving patient safety and quality of health care. Low levels of health literacy in patients compromise their safety and the quality of care given. After a doctor prescribes drugs to a patient, it then becomes the responsibility of the patient to take the drugs as prescribed.

However, many patients fail to adhere to directions due to poor comprehension of medication directions (AHRQ, 2012). Poor communication between a patient and a doctor leads to severe medication errors that harm the patient. Low levels of health literacy among patients result in negative healthcare outcomes that lower the quality of healthcare and cause harm to patients.

Patients with low health literacy levels are at a higher risk level of making medication mistakes and are more likely to be hospitalized compared to patients with high health literacy levels. This lengthens their stay at hospital and may be a source of health complications. It is necessary to educate patients on proper interpretation of prescription directions in order to avoid errors that harm them and compromise their safety.

Another dimension of health literacy is education of healthcare providers. To improve patient safety, it is important to ensure that all healthcare professionals possess the required qualifications for their jobs (AHRQ, 2012).

Health care professionals in all sites that provide patient care services such as nursing homes, hospitals, and beneficiary homes should possess the required qualifications for their jobs. Frequent training programs should be offered to health care professionals to ensure that they keep up with recent discoveries and research in their respective medical field (AHRQ, 2012).

This is necessary in order to ensure that they stop using outdated treatment procedures and tests to treat patients. In addition, it is a way of ensuring that they adopt improved medical guidelines that are geared towards improving patient safety and raising the quality of health care provided to patients.

Errors made during medical procedures arise from the actions of unqualified health care professionals who possess inadequate knowledge that does not enable them to offer quality services to patients (AHRQ, 2012). On the other hand, unqualified professionals make errors in drug prescription due to ignorance. Stringent measures should be put in place to ensure that all health care professionals are qualified and fit to provide medical services to patients.

Patient safety and quality of patient care is an important area in risk management in health care. Improvement of patient safety entails assessment of possible ways that could harm patients, prevention, and management of medical risks and analysis of incidents that cause harm to patients.

In addition, it involves reporting of such incidents to management and putting measures in place to ensure that they do not recur. Medical errors, prescription and medication errors, poor monitoring of patients, quack health care professionals, and low levels of heath literacy compromise patient safety and quality of health care.

Methods that could be used to improve patient safety and quality of health care include use of technology in the health care sector, use of evidence-based medicine, and improving health literacy for both patients and health care professionals. To manage risk in health care sector, it is important to put stringent measures that guarantee improved patient safety and high quality of patient care.

Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ). (2012). Tips to Help Prevent Medical Errors . Web.

Leape, L., Berwick, D., and Bates, D. (2007). What Practices Will Most Improve Safety? Evidence-Based Medicine Meets Patient Safety . Web.

Wong, Michael. (2012). Tips on How to Improve Patient Safety With the Help of Technology . Web.

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Nurses’ Adherence to Patient Safety Principles: A Systematic Review

Mojtaba vaismoradi, susanna tella, patricia a logan, jayden khakurel, flores vizcaya-moreno.

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Correspondence: [email protected] ; Tel.: +47-75517813

Received 2020 Feb 23; Accepted 2020 Mar 16; Issue date 2020 Mar.

Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) license ( http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ ).

Background: Quality-of-care improvement and prevention of practice errors is dependent on nurses’ adherence to the principles of patient safety. Aims: This paper aims to provide a systematic review of the international literature, to synthesise knowledge and explore factors that influence nurses’ adherence to patient-safety principles. Methods: Electronic databases in English, Norwegian, and Finnish languages were searched, using appropriate keywords to retrieve empirical articles published from 2010–2019. Using the theoretical domains of the Vincent’s framework for analysing risk and safety in clinical practice, we synthesized our findings according to ‘patient’, ‘healthcare provider’, ‘task’, ‘work environment’, and ‘organisation and management’. Findings: Six articles were found that focused on adherence to patient-safety principles during clinical nursing interventions. They focused on the management of peripheral venous catheters, surgical hand rubbing instructions, double-checking policies of medicines management, nursing handover between wards, cardiac monitoring and surveillance, and care-associated infection precautions. Patients’ participation, healthcare providers’ knowledge and attitudes, collaboration by nurses, appropriate equipment and electronic systems, education and regular feedback, and standardization of the care process influenced nurses’ adherence to patient-safety principles. Conclusions: The revelation of individual and systemic factors has implications for nursing care practice, as both influence adherence to patient-safety principles. More studies using qualitative and quantitative methods are required to enhance our knowledge of measures needed to improve nurse’ adherence to patient-safety principles and their effects on patient-safety outcomes.

Keywords: adherence, quality of care, patient-safety principles, nursing intervention, practice errors, safe care

1. Introduction

The World Health Organization defines patient safety as the absence of preventable harm to patients and prevention of unnecessary harm by healthcare professionals [ 1 ]. It has been reported that unsafe care is responsible for the loss of 64 million disability-adjusted life years each year across the globe. Patient harm during the provision of healthcare is recognized as one of the top 10 causes of disability and death in the world [ 2 ]. Regarding the financial consequence of patient harm, a retrospective analysis of inpatient harm based on data collected from 24 hospitals in the USA showed that harm-reduction strategies could reduce total healthcare costs by $108 million U.S. and generate a saving of 60,000 inpatient care days [ 3 ]. Additionally, the loss of income and productivity due to other associated costs of patient harm are estimated to be trillions of dollars annually [ 4 ]. The burden of practice errors on patients, their family members, and the healthcare system can be reduced through implementing patient-safety principles based on preventive and quality-improvement strategies [ 5 ]. Patient-safety principles are scientific methods for achieving a reliable healthcare system that minimizes the incidence rate and impact of adverse events and maximizes recovery from such incidents [ 6 ]. These principles can be categorized as risk management, infection control, medicines management, safe environment and equipment [ 7 ], patient education and participation in own care, prevention of pressure ulcers, nutrition improvement [ 8 ], leadership, teamwork, knowledge development through research [ 9 ], feeling of responsibility and accountability, and reporting practice errors [ 10 ].

The nurses’ role is to preserve patient safety and prevent harm during the provision of care in both short-term and long-term care settings [ 11 , 12 ]. Nurses are expected to adhere to organizational strategies for identifying harms and risks through assessing the patient, planning for care, monitoring and surveillance activities, double-checking, offering assistance, and communicating with other healthcare providers [ 13 , 14 ]. In addition to clear policies, leadership, research driven safety initiatives, training of healthcare staff, and patient participation [ 1 , 15 ], nurses’ adherence to the principles of patient safety [ 16 , 17 ] is required for the success of interventions aimed at the prevention of practice errors and to achieve sustainable and safer healthcare systems.

Adherence to and compliance with guidelines and recommendations are influenced by personal willingness, culture, economic and social conditions, and levels of knowledge [ 18 , 19 ]. On the other hand, lack of adherence and compliance contravenes professional beliefs, norms, and expectations of the healthcare professional’s role [ 20 ].

Institutional systemic factors influencing nurses’ adherence to and compliance with patient-safety principles are as follows: the organizational patient-safety climate [ 21 ], workload, time pressure, encouragement by leaders and colleagues [ 22 , 23 , 24 ], level of ward performance [ 25 ], provision of education for the improvement of knowledge and skills [ 11 , 18 ], institutional procedures or protocols, and also communication between healthcare staff and patients [ 11 ]. In addition, personal motivation, resistance to change, feelings of autonomy, attitude toward innovation, and empowerment are personal factors that impact on the nurses’ adherence to patient-safety principles [ 26 ].

A theoretical framework for analysing risk and safety in healthcare practice has been devised by Vincent et al. (1998) [ 27 ] based on the Reason’s model of organizational accidents [ 28 ]. It combines ‘person-centred’ approaches, where the focus is on individual responsibility for the preservation of patients’ safety and prevention of their harm, and the ‘system-centred’ approach, which considers organizational factors as precursors for endangering patient safety [ 29 ]. According to this theoretical framework, initiatives aimed at the improvement of patient safety require systematic assessments and integrative interventions to target different elements in the hierarchy of the healthcare system, including patient, healthcare provider, task, work environment, and organization and management. This framework, and similar models for risk and safety management, can help with the analysis of patient harm, to identify probable pitfalls, as well as explore how to prevent future similar incidents [ 30 ].

Adherence to the principles of patient safety and the prevention and reduction of practice errors have been facilitated by technological solutions in recent years [ 31 , 32 ]; however, suboptimal quality and safety of care remain evident, indicating the need for improved understandings of the various factors and conditions that increase adherence in daily nursing practice [ 33 ]. Consequently, this review aimed to retrieve, explore, and synthesise factors evident in the international literature that influenced nurses’ adherence to patient-safety principles. Vincent’s framework was used for the classification of findings, in order to systematically present the findings and inform clinical practice.

2. Materials and Methods

2.1. design.

A systematic review was conducted. It is an explicit and clear method of data collection, systematic description, and synthesis of findings, to reach the study goal [ 34 , 35 , 36 ]. The review findings are presented narratively since heterogeneities in the methods, objectives, and results of studies that met the inclusion criteria did not lend themselves to meta-analysis. The Preferred Reporting Items Systematic Reviews and Meta-analysis (PRISMA) Statement (2009) was applied to inform this systematic review [ 36 ].

2.2. Search Methods

Search keywords were determined after team discussions, performing a pilot search in general and specialized databases, and consultation with a librarian. Key search terms relating to adherence to patient-safety principles by nurses were used to conduct a Boolean search. For operationalising the study concept, the definition of adherence as a behaviour carried out actively by people according to orders or advice was used [ 37 ]. The word adherence is used interchangeably with, and sometimes at the same time as, the word compliance, since both can indicate the outcome of care interactions between the healthcare provider and the caregiver [ 38 , 39 , 40 , 41 , 42 ]. However, adherence indicates responsibility and empowerment on the healthcare professional’s part to actively perform the expected behaviour compared to compliance that shows responsibility on the patient’s part to follow up the therapeutic regimen [ 43 , 44 ].

The search was limited to the time period of January 2010 to August 2019, in English scientific journals available through the following online databases: PubMed (including Medline), CINAHL, Scopus, Web of Science, PsycINFO, ProQuest, and EBSCO. In addition, the authors performed searches in Nordic and Finnish databases to improve the search coverage. To find relevant studies for inclusion in the data analysis and synthesis, inclusion criteria for selection were articles with a focus on adherence to patient-safety principles in clinical nursing interventions published in online peer-reviewed scientific journals. Articles on patients and other healthcare providers, or on non-clinical initiatives, or that had no exact relevance to adherence to patient-safety principles were excluded.

2.3. Search Outcome and Data Extraction

The authors (M.V., S.T., J.K., and F.V.M.) independently performed each step of the systematic review, holding frequent online discussions and making collective agreements on how to proceed through the review steps. Gray literature, such as unpublished dissertations and policy documents and cross-referencing from bibliographies, were assessed, to improve the search coverage. Guidance and support with the search process were obtained from the librarian, when needed. All authors independently screened the titles, abstracts, and full texts of the studies retrieved during the search process. In the cases where disagreements about the inclusion of selected studies occurred, discussions were held until a consensus was reached.

A data extraction table was used to collect data on the characteristics of studies. The table included the lead author’s name, publication year, country, design, sample size and setting, and information relating to adherence to patient-safety principles. Prior to the full data extraction, this table was pilot-tested with a few selected studies, to ensure that data relevant to the review aim and analysis would be appropriately gathered.

2.4. Quality Appraisal

The selected articles were appraised based on the appropriateness of the research structure using the evaluation tools provided by the Enhancing the QUAlity and Transparency of health Research (EQUATOR) website [ 45 ] and criteria outlined by Hawker et al. (2002) [ 46 ], addressing the study aim, research structure, theoretical/conceptual research framework, conclusion, and references. The appraisal tool appropriate to cross-sectional, observational and cohort studies such as the Strengthening the Reporting of Observational Studies in Epidemiology (STROBE) was used to evaluate the suitability of selected studies for inclusion in the final data synthesis and analysis. The researchers believed that the quality appraisal items for determining the inclusion of a study in the final dataset did not align to a scoring system; therefore, they used a yes/no system to answer the appraisal-tool items during the quality appraisal and held frequent discussions on the importance and quality of each article before making the final decision on the selection of studies for data analysis and synthesis.

2.5. Data Abstraction and Synthesis

The Vincent’s framework for analysing risk and safety in clinical practice [ 27 , 47 ] was used to organize and connect the review findings to the wider theoretical perspective of patient safety. This framework was developed based on the Reason’s organisational accident model [ 28 ]. Accordingly, issues in patient safety originate in various systemic features at different categories of patient, healthcare provider, task, work environment, and organisation and management [ 27 , 47 ]. The use of this framework helped with the description and categorisation of data retrieved and accommodated heterogeneities in the studies retrieved, with respect to method, samples, settings, and findings, facilitating the integrative presentation of the review findings. The authors (M.V., S.T., P.A.L., J.K., and F.V.M.) reviewed the included studies, to allocate the studies’ findings to each category, and used frequent discussions to reach a consensus.

3.1. Search Results and Study Selections

The thorough literature search using the key terms led to the retrieval of 10,855 articles. After deleting irrelevant and duplicate titles, 382 entered the abstract-reading phase. Each abstract was assessed by using the inclusion criteria, resulting in 84 possibly relevant articles. The full texts were obtained from Finnish and Norwegian libraries and were carefully read to select only those articles that had a precise focus on adherence to patient-safety principles during clinical nursing interventions by nurses. This resulted in the final six articles chosen for data analysis. Excluded studies were on adherence by other healthcare providers, rather than nurses, or had no exact relevance to patient-safety principles. The methodological quality of the selected articles was assessed during the full-text appraisal, and no article was excluded. In general, they had acceptable qualities with respect to study research structure, theoretical and conceptual research frameworks, and relevant findings to the review aim. Grey literature and the manual search in the reference lists of the selected studies led to no more articles being discovered for inclusion. Appendix A presents the search results, giving the number of articles located in each database. The Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) flowchart is shown in Figure 1 .

The study flow diagram according to the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA).

3.2. General Characteristics of the Selected Studies

The general characteristics of the selected studies ( n = 6) are presented in Table 1 . The studies were published from 2014 to 2019 and were conducted in Australia [ 48 ], Finland [ 49 ], Norway [ 50 ], South Korea [ 51 ], Sweden [ 52 ], and the UK [ 53 ].

Characteristics of selected studies for data analysis and synthesis.

PICU: paediatric intensive care unit; NICU: neonatal intensive care unit; ICU: intensive care unit.

Three studies used a survey design [ 50 , 51 , 52 ]; one study used an observational method [ 53 ]; one applied an observational intervention design [ 49 ]; and another one was a three-stage pre-post time-series study [ 48 ]. Except for one study [ 49 ] that was published in the Finnish language, all other articles were written in English.

Diverse foci were evident in the studies: adherence to patient-safety principles on the management of peripheral venous catheters [ 52 ], surgical hand rubbing instructions [ 49 ], double-checking policies of medicines’ preparation and administration [ 53 ], handover from the intensive care unit (ICU) to the cardiac ward [ 48 ], cardiac monitoring and surveillance standards [ 50 ], and care-associated infection precautions [ 51 ].

3.3. Findings of Studies with Connection to the Vincent’s Framework

The findings were classified based on the theoretical framework for analysing risk and safety in clinical practice developed by Vincent (1998, 2010) [ 27 , 47 ] and grouped by factors related to the patient, healthcare provider, task, work environment, and organisation and management. Variations in the findings within the selected studies related to the type of patient-safety principles or different clinical settings facilitated the description and synthesis of findings under the above-mentioned categories ( Figure 2 ).

Schematic model of nurses’ adherence to patient-safety principles based on the Vincent’s framework.

3.3.1. Patient

This category was about the role of patients and how they could impact nurses’ adherence to patient-safety principles. For instance, errors made during medicines’ preparation and administration, and a deviation from medication safety principles by nurses were reported. The deviation with a high possibility of endangering patient safety happened where the parents of patients or their companions were left unobserved and unsupervised by nurses to administer medicines to patients. Unobserved or unsupervised administration contravenes the medicines management principle, which requires a nurse’s direct supervision; a crucial consideration for the prevention of abuse and patient avoidance of taking medicines as prescribed [ 53 ]. Moreover, in spite of the emphasis on patient participation in patient-safety activities, nursing handovers were delivered mainly outside the patient’s room [ 48 ], or no information was provided to patients regarding the purpose and process of cardiac monitoring [ 50 ]. These deviations could hinder patients’ active involvement in their own safe care. Additionally, the only communication line between patients and nurses was the call bell, and nurses rarely questioned patients about their pain or comfort. These identified issues represent missed opportunities for the nurses’ continuous observation role for early detection and prevention of harm during handovers from the ICU to the cardiac ward [ 48 ].

3.3.2. Healthcare Provider

This category described how nurses’ knowledge and attitudes were associated with their adherence to patient-safety principles. Variations in nurses’ adherence to patient-safety principles could be attributed to their varied levels of knowledge and attitudes. Examples included nurses’ incomplete adherence to infection-control principles, which encompassed the daily inspection of peripheral venous catheter sites, surgical hand rubbing, disinfection of hands, and the use of disposable gloves and aprons when exposed to patient excretions [ 49 , 51 , 52 ]. Other examples were related to the principles of medicines’ management: inappropriate speed of intravenous bolus, incorrect medicines’ preparation, administration at incorrect times, problematic labelling of flush syringes and administration of intravenous antibiotics without flushing, not receiving the medicines’ complete dose by patients, and incorrect mixing of medicines with diluent [ 53 ]. Lack of sufficient knowledge and skills regarding cardiac monitoring and surveillance standards were also evident, with incorrect placement of cardiac electrodes and/or skin preparation before the procedure leading to inconsistent monitoring, which could endanger patient safety [ 50 ]. Interestingly, being a newly graduated nurse with less time having passed since obtaining the nursing certificate was associated with better adherence to the peripheral venous catheter-care principles, possibly due to having more informatics skills and updated knowledge of nursing care and following up of rules set by senior nurses [ 52 ]. Additionally, negative attitudes and perceptions toward the significance of care standards, individual aesthetic manicure preferences, and the presence of eczema and skin wounds hindered adherence to the surgical hand rubbing protocol, thus having negative implications for patient safety [ 49 ].

3.3.3. Task

In this category, the association between the identity and type of nursing task and adherence to patient-safety principles by nurses was considered. The lowest adherence rates were evident in ‘independent’ medicine management tasks such as dose calculation, rate of administering intravenous bolus drugs, and labelling of flush syringes. On the other hand, a higher rate of adherence was reported for ‘cooperative’ tasks with higher levels of complexity, such as the double-checking of drugs for the actual administration of medicine to the patient [ 53 ]. Similarly, a higher number of nurses working and collaborating together in the ward was associated with a higher rate of adherence to infection-control precautions, including putting sharp articles into appropriate boxes, covering both the mouth and nose, and disinfection of hands after glove removal [ 51 ].

3.3.4. Work Environment

The effect of equipment and the workplace condition on adherence to patient-safety principles was reported in this category. The availability of equipment and electronic resources and digitalization increased the likelihood of adherence to patient safety principles related to medicine management [ 53 ], peripheral venous catheter care [ 52 ], and cardiac monitoring and surveillance [ 50 ]. Accordingly, a telemetry cover on cardiac telemetry and monitoring units helped with the prevention of nosocomial infection by preventing contamination of shared equipment [ 50 ]. Electronic resources and digitalization helped with reminding the daily inspection and information-sharing between nurses regarding peripheral venous catheter insertion sites [ 52 ]. The existence of an environmental space for preparation of medicines without interruptions helped nurses adhere more closely to double-checking instructions of preparation and administration on weekends, as compared with weekdays [ 53 ].

3.3.5. Organisation and Management

This category focused on collaboration between nurses and the leadership role in motivating nurses’ adherence to patient-safety principles. As an example, adherence to the surgical hand rubbing principles, including properly drying hands after alcohol hand rubbing and washing with water and soap, and alcohol hand rubbing up to elbows, was improved after the provision of feedback by nurse leaders [ 49 ]. Regular practical feedback processes, interaction opportunities and observation of peers and senior colleagues, and leadership motivated nurses’ adherence to daily inspection of the peripheral venous catheter site and the use of disposable gloves when handling peripheral venous catheters insertion sites [ 52 ]. Adherence to patient-safety principles by cardiac nurses was improved through feedback provision and informing nurses in the ICU of the type of nursing interventions conducted in cases of serious dysrhythmias and their outcomes [ 50 ].

The provision of a standard process for handover, such as the introduction of a validated handover tool, improved nurses’ readiness to receive patients from the ICU. It informed the preparation of the required equipment for care, enabled performance of handovers at the patient bedside, and involved patients in their care, while also assisting with attending patients’ needs, checking patients’ identity, and collecting data of their medical history and allergies. Further, the standardising of the handover process helped with the continuity of care plan by formalising discussions between nurses and assisting with removal of any ambiguities, so increasing awareness of risks to patient safety [ 48 ]. The higher adherence rate to standard precautions for infection control were found when there was a higher nurse-to-patient ratio indicating the association between workload and patient-safety management [ 51 ]. Similarly, the development of a local practice standard for cardiac monitoring and surveillance, as well as for assessing the eligibility of patients for admission to critical and non-critical telemetry sections, would improve adherence to patient-safety principles for the cardiac patient [ 50 ].

4. Discussion

This systematic review integrated current international knowledge through the categorization of factors affecting adherence to patient-safety principles by nurses to the elements of the Vincent’s framework (1998 and 2010) for analysing risk and safety in clinical practice [ 27 , 47 ].

In this review, leaving patients’ companions unsupervised during medicines’ administration, performing handovers outside patients’ rooms, and lack of the provision of information and appropriate communication with patients hindered patient participation in their understandings of their own care. Lack of engagement of patients in safe-care initiatives contravenes nurses’ adherence to patient-safety principles. Benefiting from patients’ participation requires understanding of how to improve the patient’s willingness to act as an active member of the healthcare team, development of practical guidelines for such an engagement with the consideration of patients and their relatives’ knowledge and skills of the care process, as well as definition of the role and provision of supervision and guidance by nurses. The assigned participation task should be communicated appropriately to the patient, have congruity with patients’ knowledge of nursing routines and their own implementation capacity, as well as be incorporated into routine care with the consideration of infrastructures and healthcare missions [ 14 , 54 , 55 ]. It has been suggested that planning and performing nursing care at the patient’s bedside can improve patient participation, reduce work interruptions [ 56 ], and consequently improve nurses’ adherence to safe care guidelines [ 11 ].

The findings of this review highlighted that nurses’ knowledge, perceptions, and attitudes influenced their adherence to patient-safety principles. Nurses have multiple roles and central responsibility to keep patients safe in the complex healthcare environment [ 57 , 58 ]. The effect of personal and professional values and attitudes on the consistency of adherence to patient safety by nurses has been shown to be more important than the effect of their workloads [ 22 ]. It is believed that individual factors such as nurses’ attitudes, perceptions, knowledge, and information seeking can facilitate or hinder the use of clinical practice guidelines by nurses and consequently endanger patient safety [ 11 , 26 ] through inconsistent adherence to patient-safety principles [ 59 ].

It was evident that collaborative tasks fostered nurses’ adherence to patient-safety principles. Improving nurses’ knowledge of tasks improves nurses’ adherence [ 60 ]. Moreover, the coordinated management approach and collaboration with team members enhance the effectiveness of patient-safety interventions due to the creation of a shared understanding of changes that should be made by all healthcare staff to improve the quality of care [ 61 , 62 ].

With regard to the work environment, the findings of this review highlighted how equipment and electronic systems could assist with sharing information between healthcare providers and enhance adherence to patient-safety principles. One part of the healthcare system’s commitment to patient safety is the preparation of appropriate work equipment [ 63 , 64 ]. Technology can support data security and facilitate nursing care through the provision of real-time and ubiquitous documentation, which is needed for professional interactions and collaboration [ 65 ]. Digital systems can reduce the time needed to perform nursing care and limit errors in drug administration, as well as improve nurses’ and patients’ satisfaction with care [ 66 , 67 ].

An appropriate work environment was characterised as one where nurses were less interrupted, and lower workloads improved adherence to patient-safety principles. An appropriate work environment is associated with better patient safety and less burnout. Workload and burnout act as negative mediators of safe care [ 68 , 69 ]. A work environment characterised by a heavy workload and mental pressure [ 23 , 24 , 70 ] and frequent disruptions [ 71 ] has been implicated in reducing nurses’ adherence to safety-related principles. There is an association between patient safety and the nurses’ work environment [ 39 , 72 , 73 ] and implementation of patient-safety principles to prevent errors and adverse events [ 26 , 74 ].

The findings of this review emphasized the role of regular education and provision of feedback to nurses. Taking responsibility for actions and behaviours through education and feedback is a crucial aspect of professional practice [ 75 ]. The empowerment of nurses to intervene based on care standards is an expectation of healthcare leaders which can be achieved through the development of the culture of patient safety [ 33 , 76 , 77 , 78 ], the implementation of educational programs, and timely feedback and reminders [ 79 , 80 , 81 ]. Further, the use of standard processes, supported by validated tools, guided nurses and facilitated their adherence to patient-safety principles. Usability, format, easy access of the contents of guidelines, and consideration of time, staffing, chain of communication, accuracy of practice, supplies of equipment, and logistics are the main advantages of guidelines that facilitate the implementation of safe care [ 26 , 82 ].

Limitations and Suggestions for Future Studies

In spite of the emphasis on adherence to patient-safety principles and patient-care outcomes, this study has directly focused on nurses’ adherence to patient-safety principles, which can impact our understandings of the variation of factors influencing this important concept. However, the wide nature of the search in the electronic databases and in various languages convinced the researchers that the study topic has been addressed appropriately and an answer based on the current knowledge can be provided. However, the limited number of studies that met the inclusion criteria for this review hinders the full exploration of the relationship between individual and systemic factors that impact on nurses’ adherence to patient-safety principles in inpatient and outpatient settings.

5. Conclusions

This review has shown that adherence to patient-safety principles was affected by numerous intersecting and complex factors. Variations in the studies’ aims, methods, and results hinder the formation of a determinant conclusion on how adherence to patient-safety principles can be improved. However, based on the review results, general indications are that improvement of nurses’ knowledge about patient safety, collaboration in performing tasks, reduction of workloads, provision of appropriate equipment and electronic systems for communication and sharing information, regular feedback in the workplace, and standardization of the care processes can help with enhancing nurses’ adherence to patient-safety principles. Future qualitative and quantitative studies are needed to better understand how to promote and mitigate adherence to safe-care principles by clinical nurses.

Acknowledgments

Nord University, Bodø, Norway has supported the publication of this manuscript through coverage of publication charges.

Search strategy and results based on each database.

Author Contributions

The authors contributed to the design and implementation of the research, to the analysis of the results and to the writing of the manuscript as follows; M.V., S.T., J.K., F.V.-M.: Conceptualization, Data curation, Formal analysis, Investigation, Methodology, Project administration, Resources, Software; M.V., S.T., J.K., F.V.-M., P.A.L.: Writing—original draft, Writing—review and editing. All authors have read and agreed to the published version of the manuscript.

This research received no external funding.

Conflicts of Interest

The authors have no conflicts of interest to declare.

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How to improve healthcare improvement: an essay by Mary Dixon-Woods

Dixon-Woods Mary. How to improve healthcare improvement—an essay by Mary Dixon-Woods BMJ 2019; 367 :l5514

improving safety and quality of care essay

In the NHS, as in health systems worldwide, patients are exposed to risks of avoidable harm and unwarranted variations in quality. But too often, problems in the quality and safety of healthcare are merely described, even “admired,” rather than fixed; the effort invested in collecting information (which is essential) is not matched by effort in making improvement.

More resources are clearly necessary to tackle many of these problems. There is no dispute about the preconditions for high quality, safe care: funding, staff, training, buildings, equipment, and other infrastructure. But quality health services depend not just on structures but on processes. Optimising the use of available resources requires continuous improvement of healthcare processes and systems.

QI has been advocated in healthcare for over 30 years, and we have policies emphasising the need for QI and mandating QI practice for many healthcare professionals (including junior doctors). Yet the question, “Does quality improvement actually improve quality?” remains surprisingly difficult to answer. The evidence for the benefits of QI is mixed and generally of poor quality. It is important to resolve this unsatisfactory situation. That will require doing more to bring together the practice and the study of improvement, using research to improve improvement, and thinking beyond effectiveness when considering the study and practice of improvement.