Nurses' response to parents' 'speaking-up' efforts to ensure their hospitalized child's safety: an attribution theory perspective.

Patients can play an important role in improving patient safety. Although efforts to engage patients in safety work are becoming more widespread, some have criticized the idea that patients should bear any responsibility for safety. Prior research has shown that parents may help identify safety incidents affecting hospitalized children that might otherwise go undetected, but little is known about how nurses react to parental involvement in safety. This study used attribution theory to better understand how nurses respond to safety issues raised by parents. The authors also discuss the implications of their findings on promoting parental engagement in safety. A past PSNet perspective reviewed the opportunities and limitations when engaging patients in safety.