Ensuring patient safety in eye care

Due to the frequent and rapid development of new drugs, changes in treatment protocols and patient care delivery systems including technology, patient care in health care settings is becoming increasingly complex. However, there is a greater expectation from the patient and the community regarding the quality of patient care, outcomes, and timely delivery. These create stressful situations, making the care process prone to errors, resulting in unsafe incidents. Common errors in ophthalmology include incorrect procedures, identification errors, technical errors, medical or diagnostic errors, and documentation errors. Hence, there is a dire need to create comprehensive methods to support error-free patient care. These include standardization, developing safety protocols, safety checklists, training the staff, creating a platform for reporting, performing a root-cause analysis, monitoring, and periodical meetings to improve and continue the process. Providing a dignified, non-punitive approach with a well-defined system is paramount for ensuring patient safety in eye care.