HSIB blog - Integrating restorative justice into patient safety investigation (29 July 2022)

Summary

Restorative justice brings those harmed by crime or conflict and those responsible for causing their harm into contact with each other. In healthcare, this can involve bringing together patients and families of patients who have suffered avoidable harm, and the healthcare professionals who may be responsible for this harm. The aim is to enable everyone affected by an incident to play a part in helping to set right the hurt or injury caused, and hopefully find a positive way forward.

This blog outlines the content of a lecture given to staff at the Healthcare Safety Investigation Branch (HSIB) by Jo Wailling, Senior Research Fellow at Te Herenga Waka - Victoria University of Wellington, New Zealand, who is a globally-renowned expert in restorative practice and justice in healthcare. It covers Jo's experience of co-designing and evaluating New Zealand's innovative restorative response to surgical mesh harm, practical examples for patient safety investigations and how HSIB is going to integrate restorative justice principles in its future investigations.