Many hospitals have adopted a 12-hour work shift for nurses and some studies have shown a resulting increase in burnout and decrease in patient safety. In this study, researchers assessed simulated nursing performance, cognition, and sleepiness in day nurses and night nurses who worked three consecutive 12-hour shifts. Overall results indicated nurses on both shifts mostly maintain their abilities on the simulated nursing performance assessment despite reporting increased sleepiness and fatigue. However there was more individual variation in cognition and some domains of performance.

There has been an increased focus on patient safety, including missed diagnosis, in primary care in recent years. This cohort study evaluated the incidence of emergency hospital admission within 3 days of a visit with a GP with missed sepsis, ectopic pregnancy, urinary tract infection or pulmonary embolism. Shorter duration of appointment and telephone appointment (compared with in person) were associated with increased incidence of self-referred emergency hospital admission.

Incomplete nursing care can be detrimental to care quality and patient safety. This cross-sectional survey of nurses in Sweden at one acute care hospital did not identify significant differences in missed nursing care before and during the COVID-19 pandemic. The authors posit that these results may be attributed to maintaining nurse-patient ratios, sufficient nursing skill mix, and patient mix.

Since the SEIPS (Systems Engineering Initiative for Patient Safety) conceptual model was introduced in 2006, several additional versions have been introduced. In this commentary, the authors of SEIPS 2.0 and SEIPS 3.0 present a practice-oriented SEIPS model (SEIPS 101) along with seven simple tools for use by practitioners, researchers, and others.

The relationship between resident and physician duty hours and patient safety has been the focus of a lot of research. The relationship between nurse work schedules and patient safety is less explored. This review investigated the effect of extended or excessive nurse schedules on patient outcomes. Findings conclude that working more than 12 hours daily or more than 40 hours weekly may contribute to adverse patient outcomes. The authors recommend creating policies restricting nurse shifts to no more than 12 hours per day and 40 hours per week.

Reducing resident shift duration can improve resident health and patient safety. This study found that resident shifts limited to 16 hours can reduce performance impairment and medical errors, compared to extended work shifts (24+hours).

Few medical humanitarian organizations have patient safety reporting and analysis systems. Interviews with medical and paramedical staff working in international humanitarian organizations expressed high expectations for organizational leadership to establish clear patient safety and medical error management policies.  

A systems approach is a key element in safe patient care. This systematic review concluded that a systems approach to healthcare design and delivery can lead to significant improvements in patient and service outcomes (e.g., fewer delays for appointments and time-to-treatment).  

Intensive care units (ICUs) are complex environments that carry high risk for medical errors. This qualitative study characterized the role of front-line ICU managers in organizing for safe care and creating a culture of safety.  

Emergency department (ED) overcrowding and prolonged ED stays can lead to adverse patient outcomes. This study examined patient flow bottlenecks in the ED and several factors posing risks to patient safety, such as prolonged time to triage and use of makeshift spaces (which may have inadequate staffing allocations or lack necessary equipment).

Fatigue has been linked to safety-related outcomes among many types of healthcare providers and settings. Using exploratory factor analysis, this study found physical and mental fatigue were the primary drivers of occupational fatigue in pharmacists. To increase safety, organizational interventions should strive to prevent burnout among pharmacists.

Prior research suggests that functional flexibility has benefits in several industries but may carry patient safety risks in healthcare settings. Using data from a national nursing database, this study examined the effect of unit-level nursing functional flexibility on the incidence of hospital-acquired pressure ulcers. Results indicate that higher use of functionally flexible nurses was associated with a higher number of pressure ulcers, but this effect was moderated when coworker support within the unit was high.

Human factors, such as cognitive load, are main contributors to prescribing errors. This study assessed the relationship between medication prescribing errors and a physician’s workload, successive work shifts, and prescribing experience. The researchers reviewed presumed medication errors flagged by a computerized decision support system (CDSS) in acute care settings (excluding intensive care units) and found that longer hours and less experience in prescribing specific medications increased the risk of prescribing errors.

Lack of timely follow-up of test results is a recognized patient safety problem in primary care and can lead to missed or delayed diagnoses. This study used human factors methods to understand lack of timely follow-up of abnormal test results in outpatient settings. Through interviews with the ordering physicians, the researchers identified several contributing factors, such as provider-patient communication channel mismatch and diffusion of responsibility.

Nurse staffing is an important factor in maintaining patient safety. In this study, the Nursing Home Survey on Patient Safety Culture was used to assess the association of registered nurse (RN) and certified nurse assistant (CNA) turnover on perceived patient safety culture. Results indicate that CNA turnover is associated with lower patient safety culture scores, but RN turnover is not. The authors conclude that patient safety culture improvements in nursing homes may be dependent on retaining a well-trained and skilled nursing staff.

Extended work shifts for nurses and physicians have been linked to increased risk of errors. In this systematic review, the authors discuss the impact of shift work disorder on errors and safety implications for radiographers. Studies suggested a positive correlation between errors and increased mental and physical fatigue resulting from shift work or rapid shift rotation, however none of the identified studies focused specifically on radiology professionals.

Based on data from the CMS COVID-19 Nursing Home Database, this study found that more than 20% of nursing homes report a severe shortage of personal protective equipment (PPE) and shortage of staff; rates for staffing and PPE did not improve from May to July of 2020. Nursing homes with COVID-19 cases among residents and staff, and those with lower quality scores, were more likely to report shortages.