Better Patient Safety

Patient Safety Principles

England’s Patient Safety Commissioner, Dr Henrietta Hughes, has published Patient Safety Principles, which are designed to act as a guide for senior leaders on how to deliver safer care for patients and reduce avoidable harm.

The principles were finalised following a public consultation which received more than 800 responses. This consultation is one of the commissioner’s statutory duties.
 

Focus on patients as partners

The principles will provide a clear framework for decision-making, planning and collaborative working, with patients as partners. They are for healthcare providers, commissioners, regulators, manufacturers, and the broader supply chain.
 

Seven principles to make care safer

You can read more details on the PSC website (link below), but these are the headline principles for better patient safety:

• Create a culture of safety

• Put patients at the heart of everything

• Treat people as equals

• Identify and act on inequalities

• Identify and mitigate risks

• Be transparent and accountable

• Use information and data to drive improved care and outcomes for patients and help others to do the same.
 

Full guidance here

you can read more about the Patient Safety Principles on the PSC website, you can click through to respond to the consultation (external link will open in a new browser tab or window).
 

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Further reading and resources

PSC report on the safety gap for sensory impaired patients

First Patient Safety Commissioner appointed in England

Update on Martha’s Rule

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