Hospital survey on patient safety culture in Ethiopian public hospitals: a cross-sectional study

Background Internationally, patient safety is increasingly seen as a priority area, and improving patient safety highly depends on achieving a culture that supports and encourages health care staffs to report their errors or near misses without fear of punishment. In Ethiopia, however, patient safety culture is a relatively new focus, and little is known regarding the current status of patient safety culture in public hospitals. The purpose of the current study was thus, aimed to assess the views and perceptions of health care professionals about patient safety culture in public hospitals in Ethiopia. Methods A cross-sectional study, utilizing the 'Hospital Survey on Patient Safety Culture (HSOPSC)' questionnaire was carried out in 2016 in the Amhara region. A self-administered questionnaire was distributed to the 480 health care staffs, including physicians, nurses, pharmacists, and other clinical and non-clinical staffs. Data were summarized as percentages, means, and standard deviations. ANOVA and chi-square tests were employed to examine statistical differences between health care worker's characteristics and patient safety predictors. We also computed internal consistency coefficients, correlation analysis, and exploratory factor analysis. Results A total of 410 questionnaires were returned (response rate, 85.4%). The overall patient safety score (46%) and most of the scores related to dimensions were lower than the benchmark scores. The positive response rate of two dimensions ('Teamwork within units' and 'Organizational learning-continuous improvement') received the highest score (each 72%), and the lowest score was attributed to 'Staffing' (26%). Approximately, two thirds of staffs reported at least one event in the past 1 year. Nurses reported better in the overall patient safety score compared with other health care professionals (P = 0.03). The internal consistency of the total survey was fairly satisfied (Cronbach's [alpha] = 0.77). Conclusions There is a severe deficit of patient safety culture in Ethiopian public hospitals. Creating a positive patient safety culture by implementing actions that support all dimensions of safety culture is inevitable. Further research is needed to confirm the applicability of the translated version of the HSOPSC in the Ethiopian hospital settings. Keywords: Patient safety, Patient safety culture, Hospital, Error reporting, Adverse event, Ethiopia