TY - JOUR
T1 - What do patients and families observe about pediatric safety?
T2 - A thematic analysis of real-time narratives
AU - Studenmund, Christine
AU - Lyndon, Audrey
AU - Stotts, James R.
AU - Peralta-Neel, Caroline
AU - Sharma, Anjana E.
AU - Bardach, Naomi S.
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© 2024 The Authors. Journal of Hospital Medicine published by Wiley Periodicals LLC on behalf of Society of Hospital Medicine.
PY - 2024/9
Y1 - 2024/9
N2 - Objectives: Data on inpatient safety are documented by hospital staff through incident reporting (IR) systems. Safety observations from families or patients are rarely captured. The Family Input for Quality and Safety (FIQS) study created a mobile health tool for pediatric patients and their families to anonymously report safety observations in real time during hospitalization. The study objectives were to describe these observations and identify domains salient to safety. Methods: In this observational study, we analyzed pediatric patient safety reports from June 2017 to April 2018. Participants were: English-speaking family members and hospitalized patients ≥13 years old. The analysis had two stages: (1) assessment of whether narratives met established safety event criteria and whether there were companion IRs; (2) thematic analysis to identify domains. Results: Of 248 enrolled participants, 58 submitted 120 narrative reports. Of the narratives, 68 (57%) met safety event criteria, while only 1 (0.8%) corresponded to a staff-reported IR. Twenty-five percent of narratives shared positive feedback about patient safety efforts; 75% shared constructive feedback. We identified domains particularly salient to safety: (1) patients and families as safety actors; (2) emotional safety; (3) system-centered care; and (4) shared safety domains, including medication, communication, and environment of care. Some domains capture data that is otherwise difficult to obtain (#1–3), while others fit within standard healthcare safety domains (#4). Conclusions: Patients and families observe and report salient safety events that can fill gaps in IR data. Healthcare leaders should consider incorporating patient and family observations—collected with an option for anonymity and eliciting both positive and constructive comments.
AB - Objectives: Data on inpatient safety are documented by hospital staff through incident reporting (IR) systems. Safety observations from families or patients are rarely captured. The Family Input for Quality and Safety (FIQS) study created a mobile health tool for pediatric patients and their families to anonymously report safety observations in real time during hospitalization. The study objectives were to describe these observations and identify domains salient to safety. Methods: In this observational study, we analyzed pediatric patient safety reports from June 2017 to April 2018. Participants were: English-speaking family members and hospitalized patients ≥13 years old. The analysis had two stages: (1) assessment of whether narratives met established safety event criteria and whether there were companion IRs; (2) thematic analysis to identify domains. Results: Of 248 enrolled participants, 58 submitted 120 narrative reports. Of the narratives, 68 (57%) met safety event criteria, while only 1 (0.8%) corresponded to a staff-reported IR. Twenty-five percent of narratives shared positive feedback about patient safety efforts; 75% shared constructive feedback. We identified domains particularly salient to safety: (1) patients and families as safety actors; (2) emotional safety; (3) system-centered care; and (4) shared safety domains, including medication, communication, and environment of care. Some domains capture data that is otherwise difficult to obtain (#1–3), while others fit within standard healthcare safety domains (#4). Conclusions: Patients and families observe and report salient safety events that can fill gaps in IR data. Healthcare leaders should consider incorporating patient and family observations—collected with an option for anonymity and eliciting both positive and constructive comments.
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U2 - 10.1002/jhm.13388
DO - 10.1002/jhm.13388
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:85192862769
SN - 1553-5606
VL - 19
SP - 765
EP - 776
JO - Journal of hospital medicine
JF - Journal of hospital medicine
IS - 9
ER -