Do healthcare professionals work around safety standards, and should we be worried? A scoping review (27 September 2024)

Summary

Healthcare staff adapt to challenges faced when delivering healthcare by using workarounds. Sometimes, safety standards, the very things used to routinely mitigate risk in healthcare, are the obstacles that staff work around. While workarounds have negative connotations, there is an argument that, in some circumstances, they contribute to the delivery of safe care.

This scoping review explores the circumstances and perceived implications of safety standard workarounds (SSWAs) conducted in the delivery of frontline care.

It found that SSWAs are used frequently during the delivery of everyday care, particularly during medication-related processes. These workarounds are often used to balance different risks and, in some circumstances, to achieve safe care.