Anaesthesia staff’s perceptions of patient safety culture at an Armed Forces Hospital in Southern Region, Saudi Arabia.

Abstract

Background: Increasing patient safety among healthcare organisations remains a priority worldwide. Unfortunately, there are still reported events in operating rooms regarding patients who have been injured or have suffered complications due to the service provided, despite the emphasis on the need to provide high-quality care. In order to provide such care, many studies have recommended improving the patient safety culture (PSC) for healthcare employees, which will help to increase their knowledge and improve their attitudes towards patient safety. Aim: This research aims to explore anaesthesia staff's perceptions and attitudes towards PSC and to explore if there are differences between anaesthetists and anaesthesia technologists and their experiences. Method: A cross-sectional survey design was conducted in an anaesthesia department at a military hospital in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA). Convenience sampling was used to recruit participants to explore their perceptions of PSC. Sixty-three (63) anaesthesia practitioners participated in this study and the data collection tool that was used was the Hospital Survey on Patient Safety Culture (HSOPSC), which is a closed-ended questionnaire. The questionnaire results and the participants' data were then descriptively analysed using electronic statistical testing. Result: The findings showed that only teamwork within the unit and organisational learning and continuous improvement were reasonably strong PSC areas in the anaesthesia department (83.6% and 78.4% respectively). The other PSC areas were considered as potential areas for improvement (all of them less than 75%), which is necessary to enhance the hospital and its departments’ management support, teamwork with other hospital units, the professionals' communications and reporting mistakes. Conclusion: Although there were no weak areas reported regarding PSC in the current study, the anaesthesia practitioners perceived that PSC in the anaesthesia department needs immediate action for improvement in several aspects.