World Patient Safety Day 2019: Why learning and accountability must go hand-in-hand

Summary

Creating a culture where staff are empowered to speak up is important. Equally important to keep patients safe, is that serious incidents – and the complaints that often follow them – are treated as an opportunity for learning. 

NHS organisations and their staff must take accountability for making improvements to patient safety. But accountability has too often been taken to mean ‘blame’. If staff fear being blamed, it is much harder to understand what went wrong, why, and how to reduce the chances it will happen again. 

This blog by Kate Eisenstein, Assistant Director of Insight and Public Affairs at the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman, discusses the importance of learning from mistakes and creating a culture of positive accountability.