Patient Safety Training Programs for Health Care Professionals: A Scoping Review

Abstract

Objective This study aimed to map the evidence available on patient safety training programs for health professionals.

Methods A scoping review was carried out. Several studies published between January 2010 and March 2020 in the following databases were investigated: CINAHL; MEDLINE; Nursing & Allied Health Collection: Comprehensive; Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials; Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews; Cochrane; MedicLatina, via EBSCOhost; World Health Organization; Google Scholar; BVS—Biblioteca Virtual da Saúde; PubMed; B-On; and RCAAP—Repositórios Científicos de Acesso Aberto de Portugal.

Results A total of 2841 articles were found, 7 were included. Most studies report that the development of patient safety programs for health care professionals provides them with tools and techniques to recognize adverse incidents induced by the professional system/practice; recognize human factors related to patient safety, such as nontechnical skills or tiredness; understand high-risk clinical processes; develop strategies that influence and enhance patient safety culture; promote communication, teamwork, and organizational culture concerning patient safety; analyze other characteristic and emerging topics in patient safety; and develop project proposals to improve patient safety, allowing health care professionals to consolidate their knowledge, leading initiatives to improve patient safety.

Conclusions There are still few studies that test patient safety training programs, which is a concern given the importance of implementing safe practices. The existing evidence proves the efficacy of the training programs in improving patient safety, although there are some gaps.