Patient Safety Partners: examples of impact

Summary

The Patient Safety Partner (PSP) role was introduced in 2022 by NHS England as part of its Framework for involving patients in patient safety and the National Patient Safety Strategy. In this blog, we explore some early examples of the impact the Patient Safety Partner role is having.

Speaking to members of the Patient Safety Partners Network, as well as a manager of five Patient Safety Partners, we hear how their work is having a positive influence on patient safety.

Content

Highlights from Suffolk and North East Essex Integrated Care Board

Michelle Grimes is a Patient Safety Partner at Suffolk and North East Essex Integrated Care Board. She's been involved in several safety projects where she's been able to have direct impact. Michelle has drawn out four key projects she has been involved in as part of her role as a Patient Safety Partner.

Developing information leaflets for patients and staff

I have helped produce two important information leaflets, where a gap was identified. The first was to help primary care staff understand the shift to 'The Learn from Patient Safety Events' (LFPSE) approach and encourage their transition to it. This went to all of primary care, including community pharmacies who historically tend to have low levels of reporting incidents. Some reports have begun to come in from pharmacies using the new system, which is brilliant.

The second was a patient information leaflet relating to harm caused by sodium valproate, signposting people to sources of support. It was collated in response to a pharmacist asking at our medication safety collaborative where she could direct patients.

Adapting the duty of candour letter

I have been integral to collaborative work to adapt the duty of candour letter. We have changed it to reflect a systems approach following patient safety incidents that have happened whilst in the care of more than one organisation.

Helping families raise concerns

I have also been involved in the implementation of a service for families and carers. ‘Call 4 Concern’ helps people request further clinical opinion if they feel their relative is deteriorating and it isn't being recognised, or they feel their concerns are not being heard.

Raising awareness of the role

On World Patient Safety Day last year we presented an outline of the Patient Safety Partner role and how we hoped to develop it to an audience of various health professionals, service users and third sector staff. The feedback was that people felt it was positive to have patient/carers/relatives’ views represented in this new role, and they looked forward to seeing it develop.

Improving ventilation standards at United Lincolnshire Hospitals NHS Trust

Elaine Freeman is a Patient Safety Partner at United Lincolnshire Hospitals NHS Trust. Below, she describes how she helped improve standards of ventilation in treatment rooms across the 1000-bed Trust.

Our Trust implemented the Patient Safety Partner role in September 2022, and we were all given a portfolio to manage. Due to my nursing background, I was given a clinical portfolio. This included attending the Infection Prevention and Control Group. It was through this group that I became very concerned about a ventilation report, particularly regarding treatment rooms.  

After various conversations, some research into ventilation guidance, and raising my concerns at committee meetings, I became part of a small working group led by two wonderful senior nurses. Our focus was to gather evidence that would drive change and improvement.

Our first report identified rooms unfit for purpose, due to poor air exchange etc. Since then, a great deal of change has taken place for example:

• some rooms have been downgraded in relation to what procedures can take place
• the swapping of rooms to ensure good air exchanges
• improvement of air changes to some rooms by the estates engineers
• ensuring that the treatment rooms are not also used as a store room
• no cloth covered furniture or poorly fitted blinds that cannot be cleaned
• no mobile ventilation units hanging out of a window.

Further insights from Patient Safety Partners

In addition to Michelle and Elaine’s examples, Patient Safety Partners have been sharing further feedback on the early impact they are having in their roles:

“One of the things that I have recently been involved in as a Patient Safety Partner is working with the Falls Group as an actor in a series of videos to highlight potential falls risks. The videos are currently being finalised, but it has allowed me to have an input into how falls might be reduced.” Colin Fiske, Patient Safety Partner at United Lincolnshire Hospitals NHS Trust.

“An older lady was brought into the emergency department and unfortunately died. Due to the number of patients in the emergency department there were two patients to each resus bay. So when this lady came in and staff were attempting to save her life there was another patient in the bay who unfortunately witnessed all of this. There was a full Patient Safety Incident Investigation report on this and the report indicated that the staff involved had received support, but there was no mention of any support being provided to the other patient. As a result of me raising this, the patient has now been given all the relevant support.” Patient Safety Partner.

Designing a strategy with Patient Safety Partners

In a recent interview for the hub, Patient Safety Engagement Manager, Lea Tiernan explained how the five Patient Safety Partners in her team were integral to developing their initial strategy:

“Early in their tenure, the Patient Safety Partners and I met fortnightly to design our initial strategy for involving patients in patient safety. We used the model for improvement to approach this, and after generating a driver diagram, we broke the work down into five workstreams. These include:

• Patient Safety Partner programme.
• Community engagement.
• Staff engagement and training.
• Learning response engagement.
• Equity and inclusion.

The Patient Safety Partners expressed an interest in the workstreams, and we have at least two partnered with each.”

Share your experience as a Patient Safety Partner

It's great so see the impact Patient Safety Partners are already having. We'd love to collate more examples. If you are a Patient Safety Partner and would like to share how you are making a difference (big or small), to inform and inspire others, please contact our editorial team at [email protected].

Join the Patient Safety Partners Network

In June 2023, Patient Safety Learning established the Patient Safety Partners Network. The network meets monthly in a virtual capacity and now include more than 150 Patient Safety Partners.

These meetings provide a supportive and safe space to:

• discuss the barriers and opportunities
• share successes
• discuss how they can use their collective voice to make a difference for patient safety.

Only Patient Safety Partners working with NHS organisations in England can join, although experts are often invited to present or discuss specific topics.

If you are a Patient Safety Partner, you can find out more about the Patient Safety Partner Network, and how to join here.

If you would like to attend a Patient Safety Partners Network meeting as a guest speaker, please contact us at [email protected].

Related reading

• The voice of the patient safety frontline: Chris Wardley, Patient Safety Partner at a large NHS hospital trust, introduces the Patient Safety Partners Network (PSPN). 
• Patient Safety Partners – lack of role clarity a barrier for impact: this shares insights from areas of good practice, where the role has been well support and integrated locally. These examples show how clarity and guidance has helped to remove barriers, enabling PSPs to have a positive impact for patient safety, as intended.
• Patient Safety Partners: recruitment and induction: the knowledge captured in this blog provides guidance to anyone involved in embedding the Patient Safety Partner role within their organisation. It also includes advice for Patient Safety Partners to help them navigate their new role, settle in and have a positive influence on patient safety.
• Patient Safety Partners: influencing for safety: this includes some suggested approaches and actions that Patient Safety Partners and trusts might take to help the role have greater influence and impact.
• Developing the Patient Safety Partner role: Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust share their approach: an interview with Lea Tiernan, Patient Safety Engagement Manager at Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust, about how they have developed and embedded the Patient Safety Partner role. Lea explains what they have done practically to support those starting out in the role and to integrate them at a strategic level.