Assessment of measuring and monitoring safety in healthcare in Ireland and Saudi Arabia

Abstract

In the past two decades, governments worldwide have prioritised the improvement of health care quality and safety as a primary policy goal. However, progress towards achieving this goal has been limited. The provision of poor care and the prevalence of high levels of harm persist in hospitals. Measurement is considered a crucial and essential initial step in the process of improving patient safety. However, while measuring and monitoring patient safety is widely recognised, there is a lack of agreement on how to achieve it. In this thesis, a multi-method approach was taken to address the dimensions in the Measuring and Monitoring Safety (MMS) framework developed by Vincent et al. to provide a structure for understanding how safety is measured and monitored in hospitals in Ireland and Saudi Arabia.

Study 1 is a scoping review of patient safety research carried out in the Republic of Ireland (RoI). It examines the extent, range, and nature of patient safety research activities carried out in the RoI; makes recommendations for future research; and considers how these recommendations align with the Health Service Executive’s (HSE) patient safety strategy. Study 2 considers how safety is measured and monitored in Irish hospitals and offers recommendations for how it can be improved. Study 3 is a scoping review that maps the quantity and nature of current patient safety research in Saudi Arabian hospitals, as well as identifies gaps in the existing literature. Finally, study 4 assesses the Saudi Arabian healthcare safety surveillance system in hospitals using the MMS framework.

The findings from the four studies conducted in this thesis demonstrate the availability of an adequate amount of safety data, the availability of diverse methods for collecting safety data, and the expertise necessary to improve safety. The challenge is to identify the most efficient methods for generating key and high-quality data that can help multidisciplinary teams in developing effective interventions tailored to specific health contexts.