How Safe?
Marie-Eileen Onieal discusses safety culture, asking, “Have we made that quantum leap from fixing the blame to fixing the system?”
Just as we have seen in the airline industry, it is time to change our culture of fear and defensiveness to a true “safety culture,” with a structure in which people can openly divulge their errors or report potential hazards, allowing the organization to learn from them. Until we fully embrace that approach, I fear it will take another decade before we can have a safe health care system.
REFERENCES
1. Kohn LT, Corrigan JM, Donaldson MS, eds; Committee on Quality of Health Care in America, Institute of Medicine, National Academy of Sciences. To Err Is Human: Building a Safer Health System. Washington, DC: National Academy Press; 2000.
2. Committee on Quality Health Care in America, Institute of Medicine. Crossing the quality chasm: a new health system for the 21st century (2001). www.iom.edu/~/media/Files/Report%20Files/2001/Crossing-the-Quality-Chasm/Quality%20Chasm%202001%20%20report%20brief.pdf. Accessed November 21, 2012.
3. Marx D. Patient Safety and the “Just Culture”: A Primer for Health Care Executives. New York, NY: Columbia University; 2001.
4. Dana-Farber Cancer Institute Principles of a Fair and Just Culture. www.macoalition.org/Initiatives/docs/Dana-Farber_PrinciplesJustCulture.pdf. Accessed November 21, 2012.
