Patient Safety

Patient safety has made great progress since the publication of To err is human₂ 20 years ago, but there is much more to do. Patient safety is about maximising the things that go right and minimising the things that go wrong for people experiencing healthcare. The National Patient Safety Strategy 2019 sets out the vision and ambitions in relation to patient safety for the NHS and the Patient Safety Incident Response Framework (PSIRF) 2022 lays out the operational principles that utilise a systems based approach to responding to incidents and identifying areas for learning and improvement. That allow organisations to examine incidents openly without fear of inappropriate sanction, support those affected and improve services.

Everyday over a million people are treated safely in the NHS. Occassionally, things do go wrong, or an unexpected event occurs. These are known as patient safety incidents. 

In alignment with the National Patient Safety Strategy and our local Quality and Safety Strategy, and following the principles of PSIRF we have developed our local Patient Safety Incident Response plan which will help us to identify our most significant patient safety incidents and ensure they are fully investigated. Our PSIRF policy explains in more detail how patient safety incidents are responded to and how patient safety investigations are undertaken.

We will always be open and honest about patient safety incidents that have occured. In the NHS this is known as duty of candour.

Simple steps to keep you safe during your hospital stay

While you are in hospital, keeping you safe and well is a priority for the staff looking after you. There are also some simple things you can do to help keep yourself safe during your hospital stay, such as asking for help when needed, protecting yourself from slips and falls and helping to prevent blood clots.

The NHS England National Patient Safety Team have created a video and leaflet providing tips on keeping yourself safe during your hospital stay.

Simple steps to keep you safe during your hospital stay video (British Sign Language (BSL) version)

The leaflet has also been translated into multiple languages which can be accessed here.