Many patients were unable to access care during the pandemic, particularly during surges. This longitudinal cohort study in the UK reports that 35% of participants reported disrupted access to care (e.g., cancelled or postponed appointments or procedures). While overall rates of potentially preventable hospitalization were low (3%), those who reported disrupted access had increased risk of potentially preventable hospitalization.

Intensive care units (ICU) experienced extensive, rapid reorganization at the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic. This qualitative study of ICU personnel uncovered multiple ways they experienced decreases in patient safety during the initial reorganization. They reported the unfortunate necessity of "cutting safety corners," poorly adapted temporary ICUs, and feelings of increased personal responsibility due to changes in skill mix. Participants reported the care provided was safe, but of lower quality than was typical.

Patient handoffs present opportunities for miscommunication and errors. This quasi-experimental study examined the impact of an electronic nursing handover system (ENHS) on patient safety and handover quality among patients both with and without COVID-19 in the intensive care unit (ICU). Findings indicate that the ENHS improved the quality of the handover, reduced handover time, and increased patient safety.

Staffing and nursing time at the bedside play a role in missed nursing care. This study focused on the role of COVID-19 on staffing and nursing time at the bedside and, therefore, on missed nursing care in labor and delivery units. During a peak of the pandemic, this study of obstetrics nurses found perceptions of nursing time at the bedside and adequate staffing played a significant role in missed nursing care.

Changes in healthcare delivery due to the COVID-19 pandemic resulted in delays in care that can lead to patient harm. In this study using patient safety event data submitted to the VHA National Center of Patient Safety, researchers identified healthcare delays involving laboratory results, treatment and interventional procedures, and diagnosis.   

The COVID-19 pandemic had wide-ranging impacts on care delivery and patient safety. This study examined the relationship between critical care clinician experiences related to patient safety during the pandemic and COVID-19 caseloads during the pandemic. Findings suggest that as COVID-19 caseloads increased, clinicians were more likely to perceive care as less safe.

The COVID-19 pandemic dramatically changed healthcare delivery across all settings. This qualitative study explored perceptions of patient safety in intensive care among nurses redeployed to intensive care settings during the pandemic. Nurses reported increases in patient safety risks during the pandemic, which were largely attributed to changes in nursing skill mix and poor continuity of care.

Needed nursing care that is delayed, partially completed, or not completed at all is known as missed nursing care (MNC). Researchers surveyed critical care registered nurses during two phases of the COVID-19 pandemic about recent missed nursing care, perceived quality of care, and contributing factors. There were no major changes in the types of, or reasons for, MNC compared to the reference survey completed in fall 2019.

Missed or incomplete nursing care can adversely affect care quality and safety. Based on survey responses from 295 frontline nurses in the Philippines, this study explored factors contributing to missed nursing care during the COVID-19 pandemic. Findings suggest that nurses most frequently missed tasks such as patient surveillance, comforting patients, skin care, ambulation, and oral hygiene. The authors suggest that increasing nurse staffing, adequate use of personal protective equipment, and improved safety culture may reduce instances of missed care.  

Isolation for infection prevention and control – albeit necessary – may result in unintended consequences and adverse events. Drawing from data submitted to the Pennsylvania Patient Safety Reporting System (PA-PSRS), researchers explored safety events that impacted COVID-19-positive or rule-out status patients in insolation. The most common safety events included pressure injuries or other skin integrity events, falls, and medication-related events.

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.

Missed and delayed diagnosis are a known cause of preventable adverse events. In this cohort of 107 patients with severe or critical COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, 45% developed acute kidney injury (AKI). However, nearly half of those patients (46%) were not diagnosed during their stay in the hospital. Patients with undiagnosed AKI experienced greater hospital mortality than those without AKI or diagnosed AKI. Involvement of intensive care kidney specialists is recommended to increase diagnostic awareness.

The COVID-19 pandemic has led to an extraordinary increase in the use of telehealth. This article discusses unintended consequences of telehealth and outlines guidance to assist health care providers in determining the appropriateness of a telehealth visit.

The COVID-19 pandemic has led to wide-ranging changes to health care delivery, some of which may negatively impact patient outcomes.The authors use a syndemic perspective to discuss existing challenges interfering with diagnosis (structural, socioeconomic, patient-related, and provider-related), how the COVID-19 pandemic has exacerbated those challenges, and strategies related to nurse practitioners and community health workers to improve diagnosis.  

The COVID-19 pandemic has dramatically increased the use of telehealth across various medical specialties.This systematic review did not identify any differences in patient or surgeon satisfaction or patient-reported outcomes with telehealth for orthopedic care delivery as compared to in-person visits.However, the authors note that the included studies did not adequately capture or report safety endpoints, such as complications or missed diagnoses.

COVID-19 restrictions and patient concerns have expanded use of telehealth. This study found virtual urgent care services to be an effective strategy for patient care during the pandemic.