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Parents have reported the importance of being involved in discussions with clinicians following adverse events involving their children. This study asked parents and physicians about their perspectives on inclusion of parents in morbidity and mortality (M&M) reviews. Similar to earlier studies, parents wished to be involved, while physicians were concerned that parent involvement would draw attention away from the overall purpose (e.g., quality improvement) of M&M conferences.

Biases in decision support technologies precipitate racial inequities. This commentary discusses how algorithms in machine learning contribute to inaccuracies in the care of persons of color and the displaced. Legal actions to mitigate racial biases in decision making programs and implementation steps toward improvement are discussed.

Organizations such as The Joint Commission and the Leapfrog Group require participating healthcare organizations to evaluate their patient safety culture, but surveys can represent a time burden on staff. An Illinois health system aimed to lessen this burden on staff by creating a shorter, revised survey. The final survey consisted of five questions with comparable measurement properties of the original 17-question survey; however, the authors caution the shorter survey will yield less detail than the longer version.

Disruptive behaviors are discouragingly present in health care. This commentary discusses evidence examining the impact of unprofessional behaviors on safety and clinical care. The authors suggest areas of exploration needed to design reduction efforts such as teamwork, the Safety I mindset and targeting of the root influences of impropriety.

Research has demonstrated inequitable treatment of racially minoritized patients resulting in poorer health outcomes. This study aimed to determine if implicit racial bias impacts pediatric orthopedic surgeons’ clinical decision making. While pediatric orthopedic surgeons showed stronger pro-white implicit bias compared to the US general population (29% vs. 19%), the bias did not appear to affect decision making in clinical vignettes.

Stressful situations can degrade communication, teamwork and decision making. This commentary describes a program to minimize the potential impact of implicit biases in a crisis. Steps in the process include Pausing to Listen, working to Ally and Collaborate, and seeking to Empower patients and staff members.

Residents and trainees frequently report experiencing bullying and disrespectful behaviors in the workplace. This study explored the relationship between resident psychological safety, perceived organizational support, and humiliation. Results indicate resident perception of increased organizational support (e.g., help is available when they have a problem) reduces the negative impact of humiliation on their psychological safety.

Previous research has found that mindfulness interventions can reduce stress and burnout among physicians. This survey of 98 healthcare workers within the UK National Health Service (NHS) explored the relationship between poor wellbeing, burnout and perceived safe practice and identified a positive relationship between mindfulness processes and perceived safe practices.

Burnout is characterized as emotional exhaustion, depersonalization, and decreased sense of accomplishment at work which results in overwhelming negative emotions. Earlier studies have focused on the association of burnout with the electronic medical record and the COVID-19 pandemic, among others. This study focused on the association of physician burnout and mistreatment by patients, families and visitors. Survey respondents reported experiencing mistreatment (e.g., racially or ethnically offensive remarks) and discrimination (e.g., patients or families refusing to allow the physician to provide treatment based on their gender, race, or ethnicity) in the past year. Experiencing mistreatment or discrimination was associated with burnout.

Patients and families are important partners in improving patient safety. This qualitative study explored the experiences of patients and family members involved in adverse event reviews. The authors identified four themes (communication, trauma, learning and litigation) outline eight key recommendations to address these themes by involving patients and families in adverse event reviews.

Previous research has emphasized suicide prevention in inpatient mental health settings, but less is known about suicide in outpatient settings. Using longitudinal data from 2013 to 2017, this study found no relationship between overall quality of outpatient mental healthcare and suicide rates among patients treated by the Veterans Health Administration healthcare system.

Lack of organizational support can inhibit safety culture and increase risk of burnout among healthcare workers. Researchers surveyed internal medicine physicians to explore how institutional actions and policies influenced perceived organizational support (POS) during the COVID-19 pandemic. Higher POS was associated with opportunities to discuss ethnical issues related to COVID-19, adequate access to personal protective equipment, and leadership communication regarding healthcare worker concerns regarding COVID-19. High POS was also associated with lower odds of screening positive for burnout, mental health systems, and intention to leave the profession.

Lack of patient engagement in care can place them at increased risk for safety events. This qualitative study explored ethnic minority stakeholder perspectives about patient engagement in cancer care. Focus groups consisting of participants from consumer and health organizations involved in cancer care in Australia identified three themes supporting successful engagement – consideration of sociocultural beliefs about cancer, adaptation of existing techniques tailored to stakeholders (e.g., culturally specific content), and accounting for factors such as cultural competence during implementation.