What can Safety Cases offer for patient safety? A multisite case study (21 September 2023)

Summary

The Safety Case is a regulatory technique that requires organisations to demonstrate to regulators that they have systematically identified hazards in their systems and reduced risks to being as low as reasonably practicable. It is used in several high-risk sectors, but only in a very limited way in healthcare. This multisite case study in BMJ Quality and Safety examined the first documented attempt to apply the Safety Case methodology to clinical pathways.

The study found that the Safety Case approach was recognised by those involved in the Safer Clinical Systems programme as having potential value. However, it is also fraught with challenge, highlighting the limitations of efforts to transfer safety management practices to healthcare from other sectors.