Building openness, trust, and courage: the journey of the Patient Safety Management Network

Summary

In this blog, Claire Cox, Associate Director at Patient Safety learning and chair of the Patient Safety Management Network (PSMN), describes how the PSMN is transforming from a community of interest to an emerging movement in patient safety. One where people are empowered to build openness, trust, and courage together.

Content

Four and a half years ago, the Patient Safety Management Network (PSMN) began in the simplest of ways: just four people on a Teams call.

The new Patient Safety Incident Response Framework (PSIRF) was emerging, and each of us were trying to make sense of what it meant in practice. We weren’t looking for anything grand - just a space to connect, to share a little peer support, and to avoid feeling quite so alone in the work we do.

Nervous beginnings

Looking back now, it’s almost comical that we chose to hold our first meetings on a Friday afternoon. In retrospect, it sounds ridiculous - how was that sustainable? Why would anyone willingly show up at the end of the week, when energy is lowest and inboxes are fullest?

And yet, people did. Perhaps it was the timing, coming at the moment when we were finally exhaling from the week. Perhaps it was the relief of finding others who were facing the same uncertainties. Whatever the reason, those early Friday sessions became the unlikely seedbed of what the PSMN would become.

At first, even sharing the smallest thing - like a template - made us nervous. Did we even have permission from our organisations to share this?

Every exchange carried a sense of caution. Some people were unsure if they were ‘allowed’ to join the meeting without permission. The network was transactional, useful, but tentative.

From transactions to connections

In those earliest meetings, the structure was simple. The majority of the time was spent with one person “teaching” the group something, it may have been about the role of the Academic Health Science Network or an update on the Patient Safety Incident Framework. It was mostly passive - people listened, a few had cameras on, but there wasn’t much interaction.

And that was okay.

The purpose back then wasn’t to force participation. It was to listen, share, and simply be present. If “being present” meant sitting quietly with your camera off, that was absolutely fine. People didn’t have to be there. The fact that they showed up - on a Friday afternoon no less - was the first sign that this network mattered.

Presence became the foundation. Even in silence, people began to sense that they were not alone in their work, their questions, or their uncertainties.

Over time, that quiet presence grew into participation. People began asking questions, adding their experiences, and opening up. The dynamic shifted from one-way teaching to two-way learning, and eventually into rich, many-to-many conversations where every perspective mattered.

That was the turning point: the realisation that the PSMN wasn’t just about transmitting knowledge - it was about creating it together.

Building psychological safety

This deeper sharing required something crucial: psychological safety. Trust that questions wouldn’t be dismissed. Trust that missteps could be talked about without fear. Trust that every voice mattered, regardless of experience or role.

Over time, members began modelling openness and vulnerability - admitting when they didn’t know the answer, sharing stories of what hadn’t worked, and inviting others to join them in learning.

Bit by bit, the culture evolved into one where curiosity was celebrated, not questioned.

A platform for shared learning

Today, the PSMN is unrecognisable from those early Friday calls. It has become a psychologically safe learning platform where insights are not just exchanged but created together.

What makes it truly special is the breadth of the community. The network brings together voices from every corner of the healthcare system - frontline staff from all sectors, Patient Safety Partners, carers, academics, commissioners, regulators, and more. You name it, the expertise is represented within our network. And that mix of perspectives is powerful.

Because here, learning isn’t confined by organisational walls, geographical borders, or professional silos. Instead, knowledge flows freely across them. Each conversation is enriched by the fact that people are willing to step outside of their own context and learn from others.

Now, the PSMN is moving into something we could only have dreamed of in those early days: sharing our Patient Safety Incident Investigations.

To begin with, this means exploring how we are approaching them and what the learning has been. It’s an incredibly exciting step - because this is the first time in patient safety history that this kind of open sharing has been done.

It is a sign of just how far the network has come: from tentative, nervous beginnings to breaking new ground in the way patient safety is learned and shared.

Looking back, looking ahead

When we reflect on this journey - from four people on a Friday afternoon call, hesitant to even share a template, to a thriving community that spans the entire UK healthcare system - it’s hard not to feel anything other than inspired.

What started small, simple, and a little uncertain has grown into something transformational.

The PSMN has become a beacon of what is possible when people come together with openness, trust, and courage. It is no longer just a community of interest, it’s an emerging movement 

Want to join us?

Does your work involve Patient Safety? Are you based in the UK? Would you like to be part of this journey - learning, sharing, and shaping the future of patient safety together?

Join the PSMN via the Patient Safety Learning hub

The more voices we bring together, the stronger our collective learning becomes.