Affiliations: Director Patient Safety and Quality Care for Africa (PASQUA) Ltd, Accra, Ghana | Consultant OB/GYN and General Manager, Quality Improvement, Lagoon Hospital Apapa, Lagos, Nigeria | Faculty of Medicine, Gulu University, Paediatrician Gulu Teaching Hospital and Director Kairos Charity Community Development Organisation, Gulu, Uganda
Note: [] Address for correspondence: Mr. Christopher Ente, AHSC, Joint Research Office, Imperial College London and Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust, 41 Praed Street, London W2 1NY, UK. Tel.: +44 0203 312 1236; Fax: +44 0203 312 6954; E-mail: [email protected]
Abstract: In Africa there is currently not a wide knowledge of patient safety and healthcare quality. There is inadequate data to measure the scale of medical error and its impact on the healthcare. We investigated the frontline staff experience, their awareness of medical error and willingness to participate in patient safety initiatives. This is a qualitative survey involving 60 healthcare professionals in 2 private and 2 public hospitals in Nigeria and Uganda. Findings highlighted that frontline staff have a good knowledge and understanding of medical error. Thirty percent of the participants said errors occur frequently while only 3.3% were not sure of how often errors occur in their hospitals. Inadequate research on patient safety in literature at present does not mean that medical errors or other issues that undermine patient safety do not occur in Africa. Factors that cause medical errors and the impact of such errors are known to healthcare professionals. They are willing to participate in healthcare improvement programmes. Our findings show the relevance of patient safety in the region and provide a focus for further work that would ultimately contribute to the identification of appropriate interventions that could improve patient safety in Africa.
Keywords: Patient safety, medical error, Africa, healthcare professionals
