CPSI: The safety competencies: Enhancing patient safety across the health professions (August 2009)

Summary

This is a competency based framework for patient safety set out by the Canadian Patient Safety Institute.

Content

The safety competencies is a practical framework designed for all healthcare professionals. Created by the Canadian Patient Safety Institute, it has six core competency domains:

• Contribute to a culture of patient safety – a commitment to applying core patient safety knowledge, skills and attitudes to everyday work.
• Work in teams for patient safety – working within interprofessional teams to optimise patient safety and quality of care.
• Communicate effectively for patient safety – promoting patient safety through effective healthcare communication.
• Manage safety risks – anticipating, recognising and managing situations that place patients at risk.
• Optimise human and environmental factors – managing the relationship between individual and environmental characteristics in order to optimise patient safety.
• Recognise, respond to and disclose adverse events – recognising the occurrence of an adverse event or close call and responding effectively to mitigate harm to the patient, ensure disclosure and prevent recurrence.