Patient Safety Culture Among Nurses in Saudi Arabia Research Paper

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Introduction

Every client expects to get fair treatment as they seek services from an organization since they are willing and able to spend their resources in exchange for a commodity or amenity. This justifies why clients prefer one service provider to another since they are assured they will get value for their money from the firm or individual serving them. Safety and well-being give potential and existing clients the confidence to seek services as they are assured their providers consider their security and satisfaction as priorities (Abu-El-Noor et al., 2019; Lawati et al., 2018). Patients are no exception as they seek services in healthcare facilities where they expect nurses and other practitioners to handle them with utmost care and a high level of professionalism. Patients’ well-being and safety are one of the main concerns that nurses incorporate as they deliver their services since they put the needs of their clients to ensure that each gets personalized attention.

Background

A culture of prioritizing the safety and care for patients by the nurses motivates them to work together as they are committed and working towards a collective goal (Albalawi et al., 2020). Saudi Arabia has both private and public healthcare entities that offer services to local and international patients. Professionals working in different healthcare facilities aim to provide medical services to all persons. Patient safety culture is a belief, attitude, pattern of behavior, beliefs, and competencies organized in a manner that individuals seeking treatment are provided with quality services and their wellbeing and security are considered. Patients’ needs are evaluated, and policies are developed to enhance their wellbeing, with the recognition that most Saudi Arabian healthcare facilities provide both in and out-patient services (Alharbi et al., 2018).

Practitioners working in the different healthcare facilities must first feel safe to ensure they extend the same treatment to the individuals seeking their services. Patients’ complaints and compliments about a healthcare facility should be put into consideration, and the basis for the decision-making process since all values incorporated in the treatment of all persons should begin by extending equality for all. Patient safety prioritizes the prevention of potential harm to patients, with the safety culture for patients being a popularized culture for nurses (Aljadhey et al., 2016). Open communication, effective leadership styles, decision-making processes, adequate staffing, and continuous improvement are the main drivers of patient safety culture amongst nurses.

Literature Review

According to Ammouri et al. (2015), patient safety is a crucial and relevant role for healthcare service providers, with nurses playing an active and direct role in supporting the well-being of patients. This is because nurses interact with the patients as they deliver professional services. Nurses’ knowledge, perception, and attitude towards patient safety affect the quality of service they extend to the patients, meaning they must first understand what it entails. Patient safety culture is an attitude that the well-being of patients placed under their care is considered before every decision has been made. The management policy on safety should be to support the service providers by providing an enabling environment for the nurses to deliver and treat patients with dignity. Arguably, Alonazi et al. (2016) suggested that effective communication between the executive management and the junior staff in a healthcare organization had a direct impact on the patient safety culture. This is because the decision-makers were able and committed to rectifying any limitations or challenges that prevented the nurses from offering quality services.

Open communication networks that allowed information to flow both upward freely and downwards ensured that all persons, irrespective of their position at the workplace, were committed to the organizational culture. Alswat et al. (2017) argued that an organizational culture in each healthcare facility affected the patient safety perception that nurses and other service providers had both in the short-term and in the long-term. Culture is the generally accepted norms and behavior upheld and supported in different work environments, with the management being the pioneers of such practices. Hence, nurses are more likely to factor in patient safety if the management team incorporates that in the policy formulation processes. Continuous improvement to the quality of services offered by a hospital is a direct indication that the management team is concerned about changing the approach it gives to its patients since its workers will have a better workplace that nurtures a healthy culture (Alshammari et al., 2019). Proactive measures whenever communications about existing errors in the service delivery process is an affirmation that the leadership of a healthcare facility is concerned about the wellbeing of patients.

The development of a patient safety culture in healthcare facilities is likely to support nurses in extending the same treatment to individuals placed under their care. Nurses’ awareness and perceptions of the supportive role they play would motivate them to take direct measures towards improving the way they handle patients (Alquwez et al., 2018; Albalawi et al., 2020). Additionally, each healthcare facility’s safety climate and attitude would enhance or prevent nurses from upholding the patient culture. Documentation of issues regarding patients’ safety concerns and engaging in thorough discussions by the decision-makers would ensure the development of a safe work environment. Nurses must first feel secure as they deliver their services, and any potential hazards that interfere with their wellbeing should be eliminated (Abu-El-Noor et al., 2019). Their ability to ensure patients are safe and protected for the duration they will be at the facility improves since they also feel secure.

Teamwork nurse units and perception of patient safety are some of the most important considerations that service providers consider as a contribution to organizational culture (Alquwez et al., 2018). The commitment and active participation of nurses who are adequately staffed support their ability to extend fair treatment to the patients placed under their care. This is because the nurses can communicate with each other with ease as they exchange ideas on ways they can improve the well-being of patients. Inadequate staffs in hospitals affect the nurses’ motivation to work since they have a negative attitude towards the large number of patients placed under their care, with little or no regard for their ability to take rest. However, Lawati et al. (2018) stated that elderly nurses are likely to have a stable patient safety culture since they have been in the service industry for a long period and understand the dynamics and demands of the workplace. Such professionals perceive the well-being of patients to be a priority since they are bound by an oath of service.

Conclusion

In summary, patient safety culture is a continuous debate that healthcare service providers undertake as they seek alternative measures to incorporate the well-being of individuals placed under their care. Nurses’ knowledge, perception, and attitudes towards patients affect the treatment they extend to them. Healthcare facilities’ organizational culture also affects the approach nurses embrace as they handle the patients. Constant improvement in hospitals creates the impression that patients’ needs are prioritized. Safety precautions implemented in a healthcare facility after careful deliberation of the current status may help improve the patient safety culture amongst all service providers.

References

Abu-El-Noor, N. I., Abu-El-Noor, M. K., Abuowda, Y. Z., Alfaqawi, M., & Böttcher, B. (2019). Patient safety culture among nurses working in Palestinian governmental hospital: a pathway to a new policy. BMC Health Services Research, 19(1), 1-11.

Albalawi, A., Kidd, L., & Cowey, E. (2020). Factors contributing to the patient safety culture in Saudi Arabia: a systematic review. BMJ Open, 10(10), e037875.

Alharbi, W., Cleland, J., & Morrison, Z. (2018). Assessment of patient safety culture in an adult oncology department in Saudi Arabia. Oman Medical Journal, 33(3), 200.

Aljadhey, H., Al-Babtain, B., Mahmoud, M. A., Alaqeel, S., & Ahmed, Y. (2016). Culture of safety among nurses in a tertiary teaching hospital in Saudi Arabia. Tropical Journal of Pharmaceutical Research, 15(3), 639-644.

Alonazi, N. A., Alonazi, A. A., Saeed, E., & Mohamed, S. (2016). The perception of safety culture among nurses in a tertiary hospital in Central Saudi Arabia. Sudanese Journal of Paediatrics, 16(2), 51.

Alquwez, N., Cruz, J. P., Almoghairi, A. M., Al‐otaibi, R. S., Almutairi, K. O., Alicante, J. G., & Colet, P. C. (2018). Nurses’ perceptions of patient safety culture in three hospitals in Saudi Arabia. Journal of Nursing Scholarship, 50(4), 422-431.

Alshammari, F., Pasay-an, E., Alboliteeh, M., Alshammari, M. H., Susanto, T., Villareal, S., & Gonzales, F. (2019). A survey of hospital healthcare professionals’ perceptions toward patient safety culture in Saudi Arabia. International Journal of Africa Nursing Sciences, 11, 100149.

Alswat, K., Abdalla, R. A. M., Titi, M. A., Bakash, M., Mehmood, F., Zubairi, B., & El-Jardali, F. (2017). Improving patient safety culture in Saudi Arabia (2012–2015): Trending, improvement and benchmarking. BMC Health Services Research, 17(1), 1-14.

Ammouri, A. A., Tailakh, A. K., Muliira, J. K., Geethakrishnan, R., & Al Kindi, S. N. (2015). Patient safety culture among nurses. International Nursing Review, 62(1), 102-110.

Lawati, M. H. A., Dennis, S., Short, S. D., & Abdulhadi, N. N. (2018). Patient safety and safety culture in primary health care: A systematic review. BMC Family Practice, 19(1), 1-12.

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