Safety Climate measurement in Ireland: a comparison with England and Scotland

Abstract

BackgroundSafety climate (SC) measurement is a key component of quality and safety initiatives in healthcare settings.AimWe aimed to measure SC in Irish primary care, examine whether perceptions of safety varied according to respondent characteristics, and compare responses from Irish sample to published data from England and Scotland.MethodThe PC-SafeQuest Survey was administered to all practice staff within general practices in Ireland. This survey consists of 30 items divided into five safety subscales (workload, communication, leadership, teamwork, and safety systems). Multiple regression analysis was used to identify demographic predictor variables of perceived safety. The effect size of the difference between the Irish sample and previously published English and Scottish samples was calculated for each PC-SafeQuest subscale, and the overall SC score.ResultsResponse rate was 38.5% across participating practices. Workload had the lowest overall mean score for Irish responders. It was only possible to identify variables predictive of the workload subscale. GP Principals had a significantly more negative perception of the impact of workload on patient safety than administrative staff. Comparisons across the Irish, English and Scottish samples identified a medium size effect difference in Workload. Scottish responders perceived workload to have less of a negative impact on safety than Irish or English responders (d=0.602, 0.67 respectively).ConclusionIrish safety climate data are similar to those of England and Scotland – all emphasise the negative impact of workload. These data highlight the importance of considering workload and its impact on patient safety in primary care internationally.