Mapping the patient safety footprint: The RADICAL framework

The emergence of patient safety issues in France

INTRODUCTION

The objective of this study was to elucidate the conditions of emergence of patient safety issues in the public debate and the limits to implementation of patient safety in the current health system.

METHOD

A narrative review of the international literature was conducted by searching PubMed, Cairn and Persée databases.

RESULTS

The database search retrieved 2,206 documents, 48 of which were included in the study. The theme of patient safety has spread worldwide, but emerged late in France. The delayed emergence of patient safety in France is essentially related to the euphemistic approach to the problem of patient safety, the difficulty of adopting systematic reasoning, the lack of human resources management levers and the ambiguous position of patients in relation to patient safety.

Defining attributes of patient safety through a concept analysis

AIM

The aim of this study was to report an analysis of the concept of patient safety.

BACKGROUND

Despite recent increase in the number of work being done to clarify the concept and standardize measurement of patient safety, there are still huge variations in how the term is conceptualized and how to measure patient safety data across various healthcare settings and in research.

DESIGN

Concept analysis.

DATA SOURCES

A literature search was conducted through PubMed and Cumulative Index to Nursing and Allied Health Literature, Plus using the terms 'patient safety' in the title and 'concept analysis,' 'attributes' or 'definition' in the title and or abstract. All English language literature published between 2002-2014 were considered for the review.

METHODS

Walker and Avant's method guided this analysis.

RESULTS

The defining attributes of patient safety include prevention of medical errors and avoidable adverse events, protection of patients from harm or injury and collaborative efforts by individual healthcare providers and a strong, well-integrated healthcare system. The application of Collaborative Alliance of Nursing Outcomes indicators as empirical referents would facilitate the measurement of patient safety.

CONCLUSION

With the knowledge gained from this analysis, nurses may improve patient surveillance efforts that identify potential hazards before they become adverse events and have a stronger voice in health policy decision-making that influence implementation efforts aimed at promoting patient safety, worldwide. Further studies are needed on development of a conceptual model and framework that can aid with collection and measurement of standardized patient safety data.