Mark Hughes

This year’s World Patient Safety Day on 17 September is focused on the theme ”Safe care for noncommunicable diseases”. This article explains the aims of the event and the areas it will cover. Thursday 17 September 2026 marks the seventh annual World Patient Safety Day. World Patient Safety Day aims to: increase public awareness and engagement enhance global understanding work towards global solidarity and concerted action by all countries and international partners to improve patient safety. The theme of this year’s event is “Safe care for noncommunicable diseases”.[1] Noncommunicable diseases (NCDs) tend to be of long duration and are the result of a combination of genetic, physiological, environmental and behavioural factors. Common types of NCDs include cardiovascular diseases (such as heart attacks and stroke), cancers, chronic respiratory diseases (such as chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and asthma) and diabetes. People of all age groups, regions and countries are affected by NCDs, although they are often associated with older age groups. NCDs disproportionately affect people in low- and middle-income countries, where nearly three quarters of global NCD deaths (32 million) occur.[2] People living with NCDs can need care across multiple settings over long periods of time, with multiple points where safety risks can arise. Objectives of World Patient Safety Day 2026 Raise global awareness of patient safety challenges associated with NCDs across the continuum of care through a primary health care approach while considering disease-related factors, health system challenges and determinants of health that may increase the risk of harm. Promote the meaningful engagement of people living with NCDs and communities, in identifying safety risks and co-developing solutions with health practitioners, organizational leaders and policy-makers. Encourage stakeholders to integrate patient safety principles across NCD-related legislation, policies, strategies and programmes, with an emphasis on strengthening primary health care oriented health systems. Support health workers in strengthening patient safety practices such as safer diagnosis, medication safety and meaningful patient engagement. Key messages People living with NCDs are at increased risk of harm in health care. This risk is driven by the long-term and complex nature of NCDs, health system challenges such as fragmented care and broader factors that affect access to safe care, such as poverty and discrimination. Risks must be addressed across the continuum of care and in daily life. Safety risks can arise at every stage, from prevention, early detection and diagnosis to treatment and long-term management, across health care settings, homes and communities. Strong, integrated health systems and a supported health workforce are essential for safe care. Strengthening primary health care, supporting health workers and addressing barriers that affect access to safe care through multisectoral action, are key to reducing harm. People living with NCDs must be partners in safe care. Meaningful engagement, learning from people with lived experience and supporting health literacy reduces harm and leads to safer, better-quality care. Calls to action People living with or at risk of NCDs and their caregivers - Stay informed. Stay engaged. Stay safe. Don't miss opportunities for prevention. Learn about NCD risk factors, participate in recommended screening and preventive care, and seek help early when you notice warning signs. Know your condition and safety risks. Understand your diagnosis, tests, treatments and possible sources of harm related to your condition. Follow basic safety practices such as hand hygiene and double-checking your medications. Know your rights and be an active partner in your care. Take part in health care discussions and decisions about your care. Ask questions, confirm your understanding and speak up if you have concerns or notice safety practices being missed. Be your own "information officer". Keep an accurate record of your symptoms, test results, medications and appointments, including when travelling or when away from home. Use tools like electronic records, reminders or trusted health apps to track your readings, medications, test results and appointments. Navigate transitions safely. Stay alert during "handover" moments between health practitioners and during referrals and discharge. Make sure you are clear about your medications, follow-up appointments and who to contact if your symptoms worsen. Follow up on your test results — "No news" is not always good news. Master your self-care. Know how to use your medications, medical devices and digital health tools correctly. Know your warning signs and when to seek help Health practitioners - Make NCD care safe at every step. Prioritise meaningful engagement. Partner with people living with NCDs as expert team members. Support shared decision-making. Empower people living with NCDs to recognize risks, manage their care safely and identify warning signs that require action. Promote prevention and reduce risk. Identify and address modifiable risk factors, support healthy lifestyles and provide evidence-based preventive interventions. Ensure early detection and accurate diagnosis. Reduce delays, avoid missed or incorrect diagnoses by maintaining a high index of suspicion about NCD-related risks, and interpret tests carefully, especially in people with multiple conditions. Identify risks and prevent harm. Take proactive steps to prevent harm across the continuum of care, such as missed prevention opportunities, delayed or incorrect diagnoses, medication errors, procedural risks and device-related harm. Ensure continuity and coordination of care. Communicate clearly, manage transitions safely and maintain follow-up across health practitioners and settings. Learn and improve continuously. Report incidents, share good practices and contribute to a culture of safety and continuous improvement. Health care facility managers - Establish systems that enable safe NCD care Prevent harm through early action. Establish systems that support evidence-based preventive services and risk assessment, early detection, timely management and ongoing follow-up. Enforce rigorous safety standards. Standardize care and implement protocols to address the major sources of harm. Ensure continuity and coordination of care. Establish standardized processes for handovers, referrals and discharge across practitioners and health care settings. Embed meaningful engagement within facility governance. Involve people living with NCDs in facility boards, safety committees and the design of care processes. Support and enable the workforce. Provide training, resources and supportive working conditions. Foster teamwork and open communication between staff members. Use lived experience and data to improve care. Establish a safety culture, promote incident reporting by health workers and patients and use lived experience to drive continuous improvement. Policy-makers and health care leaders - Embed safety in every NCD policy and programme. Integrate safety into NCD policies and legislation. Ensure safety is embedded in national strategies to deliver on commitments from the 2025 UN Political Declaration on NCDs. Promote prevention and early detection. Strengthen policies and programmes that support risk reduction, preventive services, screening and early detection of NCDs. Strengthen primary health care for safe NCD care. Build integrated, people-centred systems that provide continuous and coordinated care, and address barriers that prevent people from accessing safe NCD services. Ensure sustainable financing and financial protection. Mobilize and sustain resources and reduce financial barriers for accessing safe essential NCD services for all. Invest in a capable health workforce. Train, support and retain health workers with the competencies needed to deliver safe NCD care. Engage people with lived experience. Establish mechanisms to involve civil society in the design, delivery and accountability of NCD care. Civil society organisations - Mobilise action for safer NCD care. Advocate for safer NCD care. Call for the prioritization of safety and quality in NCD policies, programmes and services. Strengthen health literacy and promote early action. Provide trusted information and practical support to help people understand NCD risks, recognize early signs, and seek timely screening and care. Support safe care in everyday life. Help people living with NCDs to follow their care safely, recognize risks such as medication errors or missed care, and identify warning signs that require action. Break down barriers and promote equity. Help identify and overcome barriers such as stigma, discrimination and low health literacy that may be preventing people from accessing safe care for NCDs. Empower people to speak up. Create a culture where people feel confident to ask questions, raise concerns and insist on being heard when they feel something is wrong with their care. Collaborate for safety. Represent people with lived experience in policy dialogue and work with health workers to co-create safer systems. Share your views and experiences on the hub Do you have experiences or views around the theme of this year’s World Patient Safety Day that you would like to share? You can share your thoughts with us by commenting below (sign up here for free first), submitting a blog, or by emailing us at [email protected]. References World Health Organization. Announcing World Patient Safety Day 2026 – Safe care for noncommunicable diseases. 30 March 2026. World Health Organization. Noncommunicable diseases. 25 September 2025. Related reading Find out more about previous World Patient Safety Days in the blogs below: World Patient Safety Day 2025 World Patient Safety Day 2024 World Patient Safety Day 2023 World Patient Safety Day 2022 World Patient Safety Day 2021

This interactive session, hosted by the NHS Specialist Pharmacy Service, forms part of the ‘Medication Safety Across the System’ (MSATS) series aimed at healthcare professionals, working in any sector with a role or passion for medication safety and/or involved in medicines use. Speakers share their experience of using the Patient Safety Incident Response Framework (PSIRF) and learning response tools to support medication safety improvements. They aim to inspire and equip translation and replication across systems. What will be covered: The impact that embedding medication safety within PSIRF plans can have on the safer use of medicines. Current barriers and challenges to embedding medication safety in PSIRF. The importance of ensuring that the patient and carer perspective is central to PSIRF implementation. Shared exemplar practices where medication safety has been effectively included within PSIRF plans to inform local adaptation. Opportunities to network with peers to inform the development of appropriate local and system wide actions to embed medication safety in PSIRF plans. Register here.

In this article, Patient Safety Learning reflects on the results of the NHS Staff Survey 2025, focusing on responses relating to reporting, speaking up and acting on patient safety concerns. On 12 March 2026 the NHS published the results of its 2025 staff survey.[1] 729,423 staff from 238 organisations took part in this survey, which provides a snapshot of their experiences of working in the health service. The survey includes several questions on reporting patient safety incidents and near misses, concerns about clinical safety and views on speaking up more broadly. As we set out in this analysis, unfortunately the Staff Survey results suggest there are little signs of positive progress across many of these areas. Reporting of errors, near misses and incidents A high number of survey respondents, 86.16%, answered that their organisation encourages staff to report errors, near misses and incidents. However, 40.71% of respondents (over 290,000 staff) subsequently answered that they were unable to say with confidence that their organisation treats them fairly if they are involved in an error, near miss or incident. Answers to both these questions in the Staff Survey have remained fairly consistent across the past four years, as illustrated by the table and graph below. These results suggest there persists a significant disconnect between what organisations tell staff about reporting patient safety issues, and how staff feel they will be treated if they actually raise concerns. 67.3% of staff said that when errors, near misses or incidents are reported, their organisation takes action to ensure that they do not happen again. Responses to this question have also remained fairly static for the past four years (within a range of 67-69%), with nearly a third of staff consistently feeling unable to answer this question with a positive response. Responses to this question also vary significantly according to Trust type, with Community Trusts scoring highest on average (75.91%) and Ambulance Trusts scoring lowest (54.79%). Connected to this, nearly two-fifths of respondents, 38.98%, did not agree that they are given feedback about changes made in response to reported errors, near misses and incidents. When staff are unable to clearly see that their organisation acts on their safety concerns, it is understandable that they may be less motivated to report these. Concerns about clinical safety When asked about whether they would feel secure raising concerns about unsafe clinical practice, 71.1% of respondents answered this positively. Although this is quite a high percentage, the response rate in 2025 means that over 200,000 NHS employees, 28.9% of survey respondents, could not say that they would feel secure raising such concerns. When asked if they were confident that their organisation would address these concerns, 55.49% of staff responded positively. As illustrated by the table and graph below, responses to both these questions have remained fairly consistent across the last five years. Speaking up about concerns Turning to speaking up about concerns more broadly, 39.71% of survey respondents (over 280,000 staff) could not say that they felt safe to speak up about anything that concerns them in their organisation. As with the questions on reporting incidents, errors and near misses, again the average response varies significantly according to Trust type. When looking at Community Trusts, this figure drops to 30.2% but is significantly higher in Acute and Acute & Community Trusts (41.03%) and Ambulance Trusts (45.53%). When asked about their confidence in their organisation addressing their concern, just over half of all respondents did not express confidence that this would happen. As illustrated by the table and graph below, responses to both these questions have remained more or less consistent over the past five years, with a small decline this year. Safety culture in the NHS The 2025 staff survey results show no significant change in responses to questions on reporting, speaking up and acting on patient safety concerns in recent years. While the survey only provides an annual snapshot of experiences of working in the NHS, its findings suggest that a fear of speaking up and a lack of confidence that concerns will be acted on still persists in too many NHS organisations. These issues form a recurring theme across inquiries into major patient safety scandals.[2] [3] [4] They also can be seen reflected in the shocking experiences and testimonies of whistleblowers, such as those highlighted in our Speaking up for patient safety interview series.[5] Staff being able to raise concerns safely and effectively is essential for patient safety. However, as highlighted in a recent review shared by Roger Kline on the hub, the NHS continues to struggle with creating a culture where this happens reliably.[6] [7] Need for action It was notable that the need to tackle problems relating to safety culture was absent in the 10 Year Health Plan for the NHS, as highlighted in our response to this last year.[8] If the healthcare system is to truly be transformed over the next decade, then we cannot simply proceed by ignoring these issues or assuming they will resolve themselves. At Patient Safety Learning, we believe it is vital that we create a culture in healthcare that supports raising, discussing and addressing the risks of unsafe care. Year on year we highlight the stagnant set of staff survey results in this area because we do not believe the lack of improvement in this area is acceptable. Too often, at a national level, it appears that the extent and persistence of blame cultures in healthcare, and the need to tackle this, are acknowledged but action is not taken to address these significant challenges. It is difficult to imagine that the scale evidence of an unsafe culture in other safety critical industries would be tolerated—where the consequences of not addressing the risk in incidents may also be serious injury or loss of life. We hope that the soon to be published new NHS Quality Strategy will reflect on the importance of this issue and that health system leadership will recognise this issue as an urgent priority.[9] References NHS Staff Survey. NHS Staff Survey National Results. 12 March 2026. The Mid Staffordshire NHS Foundation Trust Public Inquiry. Report of the Mid Staffordshire NHS Foundation Trust Public Inquiry, 6 February 2013. Independent review of maternity services at Shrewsbury and Telford Hospital NHS Trust. Ockenden Report: Findings, conclusions and essential actions from the independent review of maternity services at The Shrewsbury and Telford Hospital NHS Trust, 30 March 2022. Independent Investigation into East Kent Maternity Services. Maternity and neonatal services in East Kent – the Report of the Independent Investigation, 19 October 2022. Helen Hughes and Peter Duffy. Key themes emerging from our ‘Speaking up for patient safety’ interview series. Patient Safety Learning, 14 May 2025. Roger Kline. Power and the sound of silence. Patient Safety Learning, 11 March 2026. Roger Kline. Patient safety and speaking up – learning from the literature. Patient Safety Learning, 11 March 2026. Patient Safety Learning. 10 Year Health Plan: Patient Safety Learning’s response. 14 August 2025. Patient Safety Learning and Aqua. Patient safety and the new NHS Quality Strategy. 25 February 2026.

On the 23 June 2025 the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care announced a rapid, national, independent investigation into NHS maternity and neonatal services. This interim report reflects what families, staff and others have told the investigation team and what the latter has seen themselves. Women and families across England are still being asked to share their experiences of maternity and neonatal care through a public call for evidence which is open until the 17 March 2026. In the report’s foreword, Baroness Amos notes that the experiences described by women and people who have been pregnant, families and non-birthing partners in their December report have remained as consistent themes during our meetings across the country. She states that the investigation team have heard about families being disregarded and not listened to during pregnancy and labour, a lack of kindness and compassion, and reluctance on the part of trusts and professionals to admit mistakes and say sorry when things have gone wrong. This report seeks to set out the background and changing context in which maternity and neonatal care is provided. It also examines six factors that could be contributing to pressures on the maternity and neonatal system: Capacity pressures – the investigation have heard about capacity pressures at every stage of the maternity journey. They have also identified inconsistencies between individual units and in the birth choices available to women, sometimes as a result of these capacity pressures. Culture and leadership – the investigation have heard from many families of striking shortcomings relating to organisational culture, and they heard from staff of the challenges they face in sustaining and improving a compassionate culture. Racism and discrimination – throughout their investigation, they have heard about unacceptable racism and discrimination across the maternity and neonatal system. Poor responses and lack of accountability when things go wrong – families have described a lack of compassion in the aftermath of incidents that had resulted in harm, including birth trauma and baby loss. The investigation have repeatedly heard from women and families about a lack of transparency, clear communication and learning when things went wrong. The quality of estates - from their visits to the 12 NHS trusts, the investigation has seen maternity and neonatal services that are delivered in estates that are outdated and dilapidated, and estates which are new and modern. However, the report notes that a modern estate does not always equate to a high-quality service, for example, they have also seen examples of recently built estates which were misaligned with clinical and patient need. Workforce – the report notes that even in NHS trusts that have achieved full staffing according to Birthrate Plus, staff report that maternity units do not consistently feel safely staffed in practice, due to factors such as high turnover of staff and because the numbers include midwives who do not provide frontline care. They state that some women and families recognised that staff are often working beyond capacity and that staffing levels impact on the quality of care provided.